Hacked By Fucking Laser : An Ounce of Mother is Worth A Pound of Clergy...

Hacked by fucking laser

2010-12-30T05:51:00.000+11:00

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Adik Miya @ 31weeks++!!

2010-12-29T18:56:00.002+11:00

Miya's Me Time- Jgn Tacao!!

2010-12-28T18:25:00.003+11:00

This is Miya's personal space. Pak ngah belikan this hideaway for Miya. Cantik kan?

Best lepak-lepak tenangkan diri. On my fuffy bear.

Shhh.. Jangan bising. Kacau Miya tengah tengok "dora"ni.

Thru this video player.

~ while Miya layan ni, bleh lah we all layan drama korea tanpa Miya kaco-kaco. Miya's "me time" would also mean Mama's "me time" too.

Opening Hips & Easier Childbirth

2010-12-24T14:17:00.002+11:00

I'm now 30weeks ++, so kena mulalah buat exercise to aid for childbirth nanti.

Pinggang ku pun makin sakit ni, maybe mula tak larat support my belly weight. But after doing this exercise & the usual back exercise, alhamdulillah rasa lega sikit.

Miya tahu jaga duit tau!!

2010-12-23T08:23:00.003+11:00

One.. Two.. Wee.. Fort... Fie... Shix.. Seben.....

Ooooo manyak duit Miya!!

Then mama asked "Mama nak sikit duit boleh? Nak go shopping-shopping"

Terus Miya said "NO!! This here is my DUIT!! Don't touch!!"

Terus dia cepat-cepat simpan duit dalam her coin purse.

Since Miya dah tau value duit ni, boleh lah kot mula menabung.

Adik Miya's 1st CTG

2010-12-22T08:08:00.004+11:00

CTG is a technical means of recording the fetal heartbeat and the uterine contractions during pregnancy, typically in the third trimester. The machine used to perform the monitoring is called a cardiotocograph, more commonly known as an electronic fetal monitor (EFM).

So when do you need a CTG?

o If there are health concerns for the mother during late pregnancy. This can include bleeding, high blood pressure, premature labour, diabetes, cholestasis, kidney or heart disease .

o If there are health concerns for the baby such as small for dates, an abnormality of the baby, or the pregnancy is very overdue.

o As a routine procedure during labour. Some delivery suites have a policy to perform a routine 20 minute recording of the baby's heart rate when the woman arrives in labour, even if there are no complications.

o If the waters break and the labour has not started. If the woman is waiting for her labour to start with ruptured membranes, the caregiver may perform a 20 minute trace to check her baby's well being. You can read more in waters breaking, no contractions.

o If the baby is showing signs of distress. This can be if the baby's heart rate is noticed to be lower, when the caregiver is listening intermittently (usually after a contraction during labour), or if the waters break and there is meconium staining of the amniotic fluid. This is discussed further in fetal distress.

o If the labour is being induced or augmented with an oxytocin drip or prostaglandins. These medications have the potential to overstimulate the uterus and distress the baby, therefore continuous monitoring of the baby's heart rate is usually advised when using these interventions. These are discussed in depth in Class 4, Induction and augmentation.

o If the woman is having an epidural for pain relief in labour. The baby's heart rate can lower in response to a fall in the woman's blood pressure, a possible side effect of an epidural. Caregivers usually like to have the monitor in place when an epidural is being used. You can read more on this in epidurals for pain relief.

I had my 1^st esperience with CTG when I was pregnant with Miya in about late 2^nd trimester. I had a kidney infection and due to that I keep on having frequent painful contractions. Alhamdulillah it didn’t trigger premie labour.

The 2^nd time I got this machine strapped across my belly was during labour because I had epidural. This one did give me a scare because I can see the lines go up down drastically and I am pretty much worried that my little Miya might be in stress or something. Yang bikin makin panic is when her heartbeat drastically dropped when my water breaks. Tapi syukur Alhamdulillah, 5minutes after that Miya terus keluar.

So why suddenly I need this CTG for adik Miya?

Yesterday I had the routine check-up with the midwife at the women’s hospital. As the midwife goes on and on asking the usual routine checklist, she suddenly stopped when we come to the part about the baby’s movement. She asked how active the baby is. So I said, this week the baby is not as active as weeks before. Weeks before I even have problem sleeping because the baby keeps on main-main in the middle of the night. But now I can tell when the baby is asleep and when it’s awake. Terus the midwife send me to the pregnancy daycare centre for a CTG.

There, I thought things will be just easy peasy like how it was with Miya. Sekali tak pasal-pasal lah anak ini kena label dengan the midwives there as a VERY NAUGHTY BABY.

Mana tak nye, when I 1^st got strapped, we can hear the heartbeat properly and not 5minutes after that , the baby boleh pusing-pusing. So the monitor can’t read the heartbeat. So kena betulkan semula the strap. Not even 5minutes after that budak ni tido pulak, so the midwife suruh minum air ais to wake the baby up. Terjagalah budak tu, but kejap aje tu. Dia sambung tido balik. Sabar aje lah mama dia kat sini. So I had to drink another cup of water and was told to chew on ice to keep the baby awake.

The drama doesn’t end there. Bila dia terjaga, dia main guling-guling pulak. So kejap ada heartbeat, kejap faint aje reading dia. Last-last, midwife tu suruh I baring on my rusuk kiri on elevated bed supaya kurang ruang untuk budak tu nak pusing. Then about 15minutes in such position, barulah dapat an accurate reading that meets the category ensuring that the baby is ok.

Adus-adus... the procedure yang patut take only 10-20minutes jadi over and hour daaa. Ni semua angkara budak naughty ni lah. Malu aje mama dia kat situ. Takpelah anak, janji kamu sihat and kalau nak naughty-naughty ni, buatlah dalam perut ni. Jangan dah kluar nanti makin menjadi lasak dia sudah lah yeee.

(Lepas tu mama dia berlari mencari toilet, maklumlah lepas minum air banyak gitu. Full bladder and contractions are not good combo!)

Adik Miya @ 29weeks ++

2010-12-19T10:40:00.002+11:00

Getting too big for this petite mama!!

Miya celebrates: PakNgah Anden's Convo!!

2010-12-17T07:53:00.006+11:00

Pak Ngah Anden is now M.Arch!

Miya tumpang happy sebab boleh berposing lebih-lebih depan camera & berlari suka hati merata dalam Uni Melb.

Mengidam Dodol Gula Kabung

2010-12-16T10:21:00.004+11:00

Akhirnya... dapat jugak dodol ni. Dodol Gula Kabung.

Yummy... sweet wangi gula kabung, lemak & chewy!!

Actually dalam otak ni nak dodol yang grandma my cousin buat, but dia dah lama bersara buat dodol in the 90s (case dok teringat hari raya zaman kanak-kanak). Tapi Alhamdulillah I still got the best substitute for it.

Jauh datangnya dodol ni. My Mak Busu beli kat Raub supaya I still got to have the best. Thank you Mak Busu.

Then I tried bagi Miya makan dodol ni, but dia buat muka geli geleman. Bagus. More for me then.

Miya Cheeky Monkey!!

2010-12-15T07:59:00.001+11:00

Geram geram!! Rasa cam nak gigit aje budak ni.

Pre-natal Pole Dancing?

2010-12-09T08:07:00.000+11:00

Prenatal Pole Dancing DVD from Christina Applegate

kui..kui..kui..

kah..kah..kah...

tergolek mak oiiii!

Adik Miya Yang Active

2010-12-08T12:30:00.003+11:00

Ni baru sikit aksi adik Miya joget-joget. There are times si adik ni is so active til Miya said "Mama, adik Yo Gabba Gabba!!"

Preggy Indulge?

2010-12-06T12:58:00.002+11:00

Simple Moist Choc Cupcake+Vanilla Ice-cream+Choc Topping+Hot Sunday Afternoon=HEAVEN!!

Crayon Fun Sambil Bergossip

2010-12-03T19:50:00.000+11:00

Back exercise during pregnancy

2010-12-03T10:33:00.001+11:00

Exercise to ease back pain

Exercise to ease lower back pain

Exercise to stretch upper back

Choc Fav Mama!!

2010-12-02T19:13:00.002+11:00

Biasanya kalau ada coklat kat rumah ni, semuanya Miya punya aje lah kan? Yang mama or yang papa, still in the end jadi Miya punya juga. Dia lah yg perhabiskan.

Tapi....

Bukan coklat ini ye kawan-kawan. Coklat ni selamat dari serangan Miya si saksaksa gorgon.

Sebabnya.... ada gambar cili, terus Miya psycho kata pedas.

Woohoo!!

Actually, to my tastebud takde lah pedas mana pun. However, it does have a little heat to it. Itu yang bikin lagi sedap tu. Besh............

Miya Bz Buat Epok Sayur Ni!!

2010-12-01T15:00:00.004+11:00

Miya bz buat makanan feberet papa.... Epok sayur!!

Healthy Weight Gain During Preggy

2010-11-29T10:15:00.004+11:00

Being pregnant would mean you will have to face the inevitable weight gain. It can be ok for some of us, but it can also be a horror to most of us, maklumlah we ladies ni sensitive skit bab tembam-bam-bum.

When I first got pregnant with Miya, my average weight was about 39-41kg. But by the end of the 1st trimester, my weight dropped to 36kg due to super bad morning sickness.. Memang rupa super skinny tak macam orang preggy pun. Alhamdulillah by the end of that pregnancy, my weight manage to reach up to 48kg (pretty happy about this coz I have never ever ever reach such weight in my life. this is indeed a new record for me) and within the week after birth, berat turun down to 44kg. Then in no time, thanks to breastfeeding, I got my normal weight back (eventho I still makan macam orang bela hantu).

For this 2nd pregnancy, I am not sure on how much I weigh during early pregnancy, but by the end of 1st trimester (after ramadhan yang I berjaya puasa penuh sebulan) my weight was only 38kg. Later, a week after I jump on the scale, my mama came to visit & stayed for almost 2months........ and when she left, I weigh myself again. To my surprise, I've gained 8kg. Fuiyoo!! Kagum kan? I guess hati I happy with my mama around (Bukan I sorang aje naik berat ok. Miya pun gained almost 2kg. Huhuhuhu.....)

Anyway, what concerns me now is how much is a healthy weight gain during pregnancy? Now bila I see myself in the mirror, I see this fluffy tembam woman. I feel fat!!

Tapikan.... when I asked the midwife, doctor and people around me, none said I'm fat. They said I look pretty healthy & fit for a preggo. Erk? Ye ke?

With me feeling all "fluffy" on every part of my body, I'm worried on:

what if the baby is too big and might cause complication to petite me? or
what if I go big and cause complication for the baby?
what if it will be hard for me to get my body back after baby? HORROR!!

So I did my research and found this video:

Then I found this cool tool called Pregnancy Weight Gain Calculator at babycenter.com.au and found that the healthy weight for me to gain during pregnancy is within 11.3 kgs - 15.9 kgs.

Fuisssh, lega......

How's you experience on pregnancy weight gain?

30months Miya & 26weeks Adik.

2010-11-26T09:40:00.002+11:00

Mommies Discussion On Discipline

2010-11-24T12:04:00.003+11:00

I'm now watching Dr Phil. They are having this mommies debating about spanking & yelling at kids when they really misbehave in public. It is a very subjective matter kan? So just wondering what do u ladies think about this:

1) Its ok to yell to your kids in public when they misbehave?

2) Its ok to spank/cubit/debik to your kids in public when they misbehave?

Don't you think if you yell, the kid will yell back at you louder... How embarrassing is that?

As for spanking, here in Australia ada Anti-smacking law. I've never really seen it in action, except this one case where the mom kena lockup sebab tampar anak dara dia age 16 yg kantoi mabuk). So, I have always been very careful; takut-takut ter-debik or cubit Miya & someone report me to the police. Tapi kan.... semalam kat hospital (during my routine preggy check-up), ada budak baya Miya kena debik dgn mak dia sebab sibuk main dgn water cooler. The kid mmg annoying to us around coz mengacau org nak minum & then bikin sepah-sepah. Eventhough ramai buat muka terkejut bila budak tu kena debik, I know it is not just me who have this feeling dalam hati kata "haa padan muka. tak dengar kata lagi". Miya lak bz bodi dok kata kat I "haa haa....mama dia mayah". So I reply "Mmglah mama dia marah, dia tak nak dengar kata. Miya nak kena marah depan orang camtu?" Miya dgn mula panic kata "Noi". Syukur anak aku well behaved in public.

Then later the midwife and the pathology nurses pun puji Miya kata she is well behaved. I yg tersipu-sipu ni pun kata "She might be good in public, wish you can see how she is at home". To my surprise, the pathology nurse said something that really make sense to me. She said "Oh, that is what you would want, love. You can't have everything and do be thankful with what you have". Betul gak kan? Kalau kat rumah tu, kita bleh lg control keadaan. Kalu in public ni mmg payah aaa..

Anyway, back on topic. From those 2 points in question, Dr Phil tanya if mommies sedar yg anak-anak zaman sekarang ni banyak rude. Studies show that 98% of kids nowadays are rude. They are rude and that is why they misbehave (especially in public with an audience). Dr Phil believed that anak-anak ni rude sebab kita parents ni yg allow them to grow rude. Starts from kita melayan tantrum toddler until lah dia masuk the teenage rebellious stage. Do we let them get away with little misbehave and later it grow berulat? Or kita manjakan or spoil-kan anak?What do you think of this fact?

What would you do supaya anak kita ni tak terjebak dlm percentage 98% ini?

Our 5th Year!!

2010-11-19T09:12:00.001+11:00

I found my new best buddy!!

2010-11-18T11:44:00.004+11:00

This entry is a sambungan from my previous post on caffeine & pregnancy and I proudly declare that I've found my new best buddy (buddy during preggy aje kot)... Nescafe Blend 43 Decaf.

Amazingly, the taste is not like diluted coffee and it has great aroma. Bila minum memang rasa cam aromatic coffee biasa/expresso, but the after effect tu takde lah cam lepas minum the usual strong coffee (segar).

However, it does give that usual coffee comfort I seek.

These are the little things you should give thanks to Allah..... Nikmat......

Miya tekun checking out SALE!!

2010-11-17T15:41:00.002+11:00

Toys on sale lah Mama....Miya macam minat yang ini, itu dan itu.....tu juga....

Eid Mubarak!!

2010-11-16T09:37:00.001+11:00

A coffeeholic giving up caffeine during pregnancy?

2010-11-12T11:45:00.007+11:00

Nope, not for me. I simply can’t. Nanti sakit kepala lah, mengantuk lah, takde semangat lah and a bit rasa tak puas.

If I forego coffee, I would still want some green tea. There are times I crave for a nice lemon tea and then there are times mulut rasa tak best and having cola would do wonders. Most of all, I can’t say no to chocolates!

Do you have the same problem as me? Are you aware of caffeine existence in our drink/food?

Here’s some quick fact about caffeine in our drinks & food:

1 mug of instant: 100mg
1 cup of instant coffee: 75mg
1 cup of brewed coffee & expresso: 100mg to 350mg, depending on beans and how it is made 1 mug of tea: 75mg
1 mug of teh O: 45mg
1mug of teh susu: 15mg
1mug of green tea: 20mg
1 can of cola: 40mg
1 can of energy drink: 80mg
50g plain chocolate: 50mg
50g of milk chocolate: 25mg

It’s pretty hard to completely skip caffeine, isn’t it? Well, you don't have to give up caffeine, but you may want to cut down. According to the Australian Government, department of Health & Aging, it is recommend that pregnant women have no more than 200mg of caffeine a day. There are also many experts recommend limiting intake to no more than 300 mg per day.

I guess this intake does depend on your body and resistance.

Anyhow, we should also keep in mind on how caffeine is still potentially dengeraous substance during pregnancy. Caffeine readily crosses the placenta (which develops at the end of the first trimester) and can affect fetal heart rate and breathing. It can also increase the risk of miscarriage, sudden infant death syndrome and low birth weight, according to the American Dietetic Association (ADA 2002), and very high doses may result in congenital anomalies or birth defects (Browne 2006). It is especially important to limit caffeine during the first trimester, when the baby’s organs are developing and the risk of miscarriage is highest.

I was pretty lucky that during the first trimester of both pregnancies, my hormones are helping me to cut down on my coffee. Mulut rasa very the cipan to coffee and almost all hot drinks. I ended up drinking quite a lot of warm barley drink... Yummeh.....

But as the morning sickness goes away, I started to crave for coffee once again. So I did the most sappy/no-spine thing a coffeeholic can do..... CONVERT TO DECAF!!

Decaf has only 5 mg of caffeine in it per 8 oz serving, compared to nearly 20 times that in a regular cup! Isnt it wonderful for a preggy coffeeholic?

Yet, things are not that simple. Ada cara jugak dalam memilih decaf ni. I came to know that that decaf can actually be worse for you than regular coffee because there are so many toxins & chemicals involved in the process that makes the coffee "decaffeinated".

The two major methods for decaffeinating coffee are called "direct" and "indirect". Using the direct method, the green, unroasted beans are steamed immediately before they're treated with a chemical solvent to extract the caffeine. This normally takes roughly 10 hours. After the beans are tested to verify the caffeine levels match the specifications, they're steamed again both to rinse the beans and to help the solvent to evaporate. In order to dry, companies use either vacuum or air dryers.

The indirect method treats the caffeine-removing agent with a solution that contains caffeine. Companies soak the beans in water that is kept just under the boiling point until the caffeine is extracted. When the beans are ready, the water is removed in order for the caffeine to be extracted. Then, other chemicals are mixed into the water before the beans once again are left to soak. The beans need this time to soak in order to reabsorb any lost chemicals and flavor lost during the caffeine extraction process.

If you are particular about this whole chemical thingy, make sure you select the right brand/type of decaf.

Well this is my simple solution to such addiction and it works for me. Yang penting, I will doa for Allah's protection for the child in my womb...and me too.

So do you have caffeine addiction too? How to do cope with it?

Simple Exercises for Preggy Me

2010-11-11T17:40:00.003+11:00

When I was preggy with Miya, I had all the time in the world to do pre-natal yoga. But this time around I'm pretty occupied with mommy's duty, studies & entertaining Miya. Alhamdulillah now dengan ada internet, I found some simple exercise for preggy mommy that doesn't require so much time as yoga.

Birth Exercises: Late Pregnancy Fitness for Easier Childbirth - The best video clips are here

4 Great Pregnancy Exercises For A Firm Butt & Thighs! - For more of the funniest videos, click here

Blooming Beautifully My Princess Blooming Flower

2010-11-11T09:52:00.002+11:00

Save $$ on Maternity Clothing

2010-11-09T10:51:00.004+11:00

In the early 2nd trimester, I've eliminated about 5 of my size 0 pants+jeans from my wardrobe.

Today I've eliminated 8pants+jeans (size M) & 1 skirt (size M) from my wardrobe.

Arrgh... kena go shop lagi ke? Malas lah..... Terasa cam wasting aje...

Was thinking of investing some $$ on buying belly belt , but the actual problem is not just tak boleh zip up or butang, tak boleh sarung lepas peha & montot. Ouch... me gone big at the bottom. Erk!!

Most of my baju, I can still fit coz they are all lycra or stretchy cotton, but very the sarung nagka one. So I have to wear them with a dress on top or a vest sweater.

Now... that got me wondering, how can I still have something sane to wear without having to waste $$ in buying maternity (we all know it can be expensive & pakai time preggy aje, not a good investment for me who doesn't plan to branak yearly). So...... I've come up with these ideas:

1) Invest on sane sweat pants (rupa senonoh lah, tak cam sluar PJ budak sekolah), leggings, tights, baggy pantz (ala aladin/mc hammer) or stretchie jeans. For muslimah bertudung, I would suggest to buy a few size larger than your usual size (so tak nampak bentuk kaki sgt).

2) Invest on bohemian skirts with pinggang getah or pull string. So boleh pakai time moncit & ramping.

3) Invest on baju inner nipis & baby doll dress. These inners pun boleh pakai dgn those fashionable baggy singlets. Its best to have baju luar tu a bit labuh, so that baju tak terjungkit & show the lower part of ur tummy. With this u can save $$ from having to buy a 'bella band'.

4) If you are a jubah person, invest on jubah. When I was preggy with Miya, during 3rd trimester I wore jubah to work (kemas & comfy), borrowed mostly from my mom. Mujur dia ada byk jubah stylo & bling bling. Also you can invest on bohemian dress. Ni boleh pakai time preggy & after baby too.

I believe, dengan cara ni we can save loads of $$ & most of these clothes can still be worn after the baby kan?

Hmm.. now I know on what to shop after this. InsyaAllah takkan membazir, so more $$ saved for the new baby.

Care to share you tips on this?

Gross & Disgusting Pregnancy Facts (That you don't share openly with your girlfriend)

2010-11-04T08:36:00.004+11:00

Gross & Disgusting Pregnancy Stuff That We Are Not Proud Of & Wish They Would Go Away Soon:

Bitchiness
Wek wek...
Food becomes an obsession (kekadang rasa cam oink oink aje)
Vaginal Discharge, tiba-tiba rasa empangan pecah
Constipation (menyebabkan menyampah & rasa stress cam nak lempang orang)
Haemorrhoids (tamau citerlah betapa uncomfynya situasi ni)
Varicose veins, nampak urat-urat timbul merata-rata (geli/seriau pun ada)
Nosebleed (I slalu kena, Miya cam trauma aje tengok)
Bleeding gum (Ni pun I slalu kena, Miya cam trauma aje tengok)
Gas!! (tamau cerita sangatlah, but we ladies yang pernah preggy ni tau-tau aje la kan)
Hair Growth (bulu-bulu lebat-lebat, eh bukan I br lepas trim ke?)
Extra saliva (takdelah sampai bersembur bila bercakap, but kena rajin telan airliur..menyampah)
Hyper-pigmentation on face or neck (this is my horror story... tiba-tiba muka ala-ala anak matsalleh yang banyak freckles)
Pimple (I got those jerawat kecik-kecik yang kejap ada kejap takde)
Leaky colostrums (make sure pakai padded bra)
Itchy nipple (kalau kena kat public area, camne nak mengaru tu)
Frequent potty break (annoying)
Cry over everything (iklan sayu pun bleh nangis)
Laziness (takde la malas sangat, but rasa letih & berat montot aje)
Bitchiness (he hehe hee heheeee)
Nothing much is comfortable, unless you are naked
Dreams, weird ones (bangun tido tu mesti terasa cam apa la karut sgt mimpi aku ni)
Headache & migraines (takde angin, takde hujan, takde rebut....tiba-tiba ada sakit kepala)
Vomiting while brushing teeth (salah toothpaste kah?)
Pee when you sneeze combo (untunglah company jual panty liner)
Rashes naik sporadically merata-rata tak pasal-pasal.
Sakit belakang & sengal kat pangkal 'poonanny'. (makin us buat macam-macam weird stuff nak elak or kurangkan sakit tu)
And more bitchiness....

Hmm... anything you ladies care to add that I might have missed....

Stroller? This is the cheapest Triple Stroller!!

2010-11-03T16:10:00.003+11:00

Mama mengidam nak ada double stroller. But its expensive & bulky...

Senyap-senyap Miya invented tripple stroller at no cost.

I wish things can be that simple sayang...

Miya's 2nd Haircut!!

2010-11-02T18:20:00.005+11:00

Harini Mama Miya tiba-tiba jealous dengan rambut Miya yang panjang beralun lagi halus ni.

Tak pasal-pasal dia kata "Ish..Miya ni serabai lah. Nak trim lah rambut Miya tu".

Miya rasa rambut Miya ok aje, tapi Mama dah jealous kat Miya ni. So, Miya relakan ajelah Mama potong rambut Miya sampai dia rasa puas hati.

Dari rambut Miya yang cantik sebegini...

Jadinya kontot sebegini.....

Tapi bila belek-belek depan cermin tu kan Auntie-auntie, Miya rasa Miya Gorgeous aje in this modern chic hairstyle, kan kan kan?

Agak-agak Mama puas hati tak ni? Kalau tak puas hati, naya lah Miya. Nanti dia potong pulak sampai botak.

Sayang Tokma to Mama & Miya

2010-11-01T12:43:00.004+11:00

Kehebatan kasih ibu... Sebulan lebih Tokma stayed with us. Berat menjadi-jadi naiknya.

Weight on 11/9/2010-38kg.

Weight on 30/10/2010-46kg.

Weight on 11/9/2010- 11kg.

Weight on 30/10/2010- 12.5kg.

Missing you oledi lah Tokma!!

Counting days to Tokma's next flight coming to Melb in Dec 2010.

Nurturing Toddler's Fine Motor Skill

2010-10-28T16:20:00.003+11:00

During the infant and toddler years, children develop basic grasping and manipulation skills, which are refined during the preschool years. The preschooler becomes quite adept in self-help, construction, holding grips, and bimanual control tasks requiring the use of both hands. – Essa, E., Young, R. & Lehne, L., Introduction to early childhood education, 2nd Ed. (1998)

Okie auntie-auntie. Miya dah terrer buat rantai beads. Ada sapa-sapa nak tempah?

Buat rantai mainan ni adalah antara method in nurturing fine motor skill through "manipulative material".

Pregnancy & Pedicure

2010-10-27T12:28:00.003+11:00

My belly dah semakin besar and today I find it pretty hard to cut my toe nails. Tergeliat segala urat nak get into an "okay" position untuk potong kuku tau. I didn't remember having such difficulty when I was pregnant with Miya.

Have you experienced begini jugak? Care to share your tips to do your toe nails during pregnancy (while having a large belly)?

Cucu Manja Tokma!!

2010-10-26T11:57:00.005+11:00

Miya, the spoiled rotten toddler, sayang sangat tokma!!

Tokma is Miya's bestfriend, tau.

Teman Miya menyanyi, menari, go to the playground, go shopping and go 'kayan-kayan' (pelat Miya for 'Jalan-jalan').

Kalau gaduh, Miya akan kata "Takmo kawan sudah. Dok diam". Sapa ajar ayat tu? Tokma lah, sapa lagi.

Miya suka fakup-fakup (pelat Miya for 'make-up'). Sapa ajar tu? Tokma lah, sapa lagi.

Over sebulan tokma dok dgn dia, memacam peel timbul.

Cute memanglah cute, tapi......

DHA for the Human Body

2010-10-25T12:34:00.005+11:00

After publishing last week’s post, I still rasa tak puas hati on this DHA matter. Could the study have just proven only for preggy moms & babies? Or could it also have had a similar result if a new study being conducted for the overall benefits of DHA to all age and gender?

So to get it out of my system, I decided to do some reading on DHA. Lemme share my findings.....

As we all know, DHA cannot be produced by our body on its own, we need to get DHA from our diet.

DHA is a major structural component of our retinal membranes, the nerves and the brain. Prior to the recent study being done on preggy ladies by the Women's and Children's Health Research Institute, Adelaide (Australia), studies have proven that fish oil helps the brain to repair damage by promoting neuronal growth and for the past decade of n−3 fatty acid research has procured some Western interest in n−3 fatty acids as being a legitimate 'brain food.'

DHA has also been promoted as having the properties of anti-cancer(the fatty acid kurangkan risk of tumor growth), avoiding cardiovascular disease (the good cholesterol in the fish oil flushes out the bad cholesterol), boost of immune function, reduces inflammation (e.g. headache, migraine, sakit sendi & sengal-sengal badan).

And in regards to DHA and pregnancy, once a study have been done on nearly 9,000 pregnant women, researchers found women who ate fish once a week during their first trimester had 3.6 times less risk of low birth weight and premature birth than those who ate no fish. Low consumption of fish was a strong risk factor for preterm delivery and low birth weight. However, there have been attempts by other groups of researcher to replicate the study and do a further discovery on this area, tapi many unsuccessful. Therefore, it is safe for me to say that it is a questionable recommendation for DHA to be promoted to preggy ladies as something that has important contribution to the growth of the unborn child.

Moreover, there are also risks related to the consumption of DHA supplement and among them are:

· Increased incidence of bleeding.

· Hemorrhagic stroke.

· Oxidation of omega-3 fatty acids forming biologically active oxidation products.

· Increased levels of low density lipoproteins (LDL) cholesterol or apoproteins associated with LDL cholesterol among diabetics and hyperlipidemics.

· Reduced glycemic control among diabetics.

· Heart health and cardiac risk (for people with existing condition).

These are the known or suspected risks of EPA and DHA n−3 fatty acids if consumed in excess of 3 grams per day.

So...... from the benefits and information I’ve listed here, many health institution and association recommends for us to eat fatty fish rich with DHA or to consume vegetable oils primarily flaxseed, soy, and canola (for the vegan/vegetarian) for at least twice a week, which is a better choice than taking supplements.

Tapi, sebabkan kita ni selalu tak makan a well balanced diet nor do we always consume food from the freshest ingredient, the capitalist world took the advantage to promote and market fish oil capsules as a safe source for DHA as the better option.

Now, do you agree with my findings on DHA?

Happy Birthday To Me!!

2010-10-24T18:00:00.000+11:00

Alhamdulillah, each day of the year creates a wonderful piece in completing my life. I couldn't ask for more and I can only give thanks.

DHA for Preggy Mama & Unborn Child

2010-10-21T14:52:00.005+11:00

Semalam while tengah bersiap nak pegi uni, I heard Mel and Kochie (Sunrise on 7) said that a new study have found that Dietary docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) fish oil supplement does not give effect to a pregnant mother or to the unborn child.

Wah wah..ni cukup bercanggah from what I have been educated.

Sebelum ni, we have been educated on the fact that DHA is best for to pregnant women as a way of enhancing their offspring's intelligence as well as protecting from subsequent post-natal depression.

Even many epidemiological investigations from the United States and Europe demonstrate that higher intakes of n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA) from fish and seafood during pregnancy are associated with a reduced risk of depressive symptoms in the postnatal period, as well as improved developmental outcomes in the offspring. So from there many consumers (mainly mothers) are recommended to increase intake of DHA in pregnancy, and the nutritional supplement industry successfully markets prenatal supplements with DHA to optimize brain function of mother and infant.

So sebabkan tak puas hati, I did more reading on this issue and I finally came to understood on standing of the recent finding on this DHA issues.

Let me share my findings with you mommies.

Recently, the Women's and Children's Health Research Institute, Adelaide (Australia), published a study supporting the fact that pregnant women who take DHA fish oil capsules during pregnancy do not reduce their risk of developing post-natal depression, nor do the supplements have any effect on the baby's cognitive and language development during early childhood.

A team of researchers, lead by Maria Makrides, B.Sc., B.N.D., Ph.D. carried out a randomized, multi-centre trial to determine whether DHA fish oil supplements during the latter half of pregnancy had any effect on the risk of developing postpartum depression, as well as enhancing cognitive development of the baby during their first years.

The study involved 2,399 females less than 21-weeks pregnant were recruited at 5 maternity hospitals in Australia between October 2005 and January 2008. By the end of December 2009 a total of 726 children were followed-up. The pregnant women had received 800 mg/d of DHA fish oil capsules or equivalent vegetable oil capsules with no DHA up to the day of childbirth. 96.7% of the women completed the course of capsules.

The researchers founded that:

“Current recommendations suggest that pregnant women increase their dietary DHA to improve their health outcomes as well as those of their children. Such recommendations are increasingly being adopted with women taking prenatal supplements with DHA. However, the results of [this trial] do not support routine DHA supplementation for pregnant women to reduce depressive symptoms or to improve cognitive or language outcomes in early childhood.

Our results are at odds with the results of some large-scale epidemiological studies. It may be that even well-conducted epidemiological studies overestimate effect size and do not adequately deal with residual confounding, or that other nutrients in fish and seafood, beyond DHA, contribute to the observations from epidemiological studies. Further studies are required to determine whether there are specific benefits of DHA supplementation for women with a previous history of depression and for women at risk of preterm birth”.

Jeng jeng jeng....

What do you mommies think? Is this just another inconclusive study or have we been tricked into consuming something we don’t really need all along?

New Passion for Souffle

2010-10-15T08:50:00.006+11:00

Soufflé is the experiment of the week.

Mula-mula buat, I tot its easy peasy aje.

I follow everything in the recipe down to the dot, but bila bakar the souffle naik skit aje.

Instead of this:

Dia jadi cam ni:

Tapi rasa dia mmg dah sedap cam kat kedai lah. Even better! Because dia tak semanis yang commercially made.

So, sebab tak puas hati on what I did wrong, I studied on a few recipes and method on making a perfect souffle.

Waaa..rupanya aritu I sudah silap on beating the egg whites. When beating the egg white, I was suppose to beat it until soft peak form & not stiff peak. Kalau stiff peak, dia akan naik cantik time bakar but akan pancit the second kluar dari oven.

So I tried another recipe, Orange Soufflé and the result:

Memang naik cantik...On taste pula mmg puas lah my preggy tastebud ni bila topped with choc sauce.

Still I think ada byk ruang for improvements ni.

So apa flavour of soufflé to try next? Cheese?

Toddler Tantrum - The Terrible Two

2010-10-13T07:32:00.003+11:00

If you child is going thru the terrible two, you should watch this.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Syukur la Miya punye terrible two tak teruk gini. I feel so much better.

Remember mommies, tantrum is just a phase.

Adik Miya @ 20weeks!!

2010-10-12T07:30:00.002+11:00

When I showed gambar adik to Miya, she said "hmm macam baby..hmm macam adik.. hmm macam nose..hmm macam eyes".

Macam-macam la Kakak Miya oooi....

Anyway, Alhamdulillah everything is ok & anak ni growing well.

I'm halfway thru!!

Miya sukaaaaaaaaaaa Chocolate!!

2010-10-10T10:21:00.005+11:00

Mama's homemade churros with choc dip?

Brunetti's famous desserts?

Devil Choc Layers-Mars Bars, washed down with french vanilla chai latte?

Heaven on Earth!!!

Kisah Miya Masak

2010-10-08T08:37:00.004+11:00

Mama Miya sekarang malas sangat nak masak. So nak tak nak, Miya jugak lah yang kena masak. Kalau tak, kebulor la we all.

It's ok Mama, Miya paham.

Takpe-takpe, Mama rest ok. Nanti takut jadi apa-apa kat adik.

Hmm...So apa menu kita harini?

(muka mencari ilham)

Hish, letih masak berdiri. Kita masak duduk lak.

Cerita bergambar- Kisah Miya Di Ramadhan & Syawal

2010-10-06T10:53:00.008+11:00

Okie Kawan-kawan & Auntie-auntie, mari Miya cerita kisah ramadhan.

(malkumla, back few weeks mama sibuk mabuk-mabuk. So dia takde pun cerita kisah miya kat blog.)

Among the wonderful thing we did during ramadhan:

We celebrated birthday Papa-miya time berbuka. Cantik tak cake Miya buat? Oishiiiiiiiii!

Then banyak we attend iftar dirumah kawan-kawan mama & papa.

Time ni la Miya dapat bersosial dengan budak-budak renek-renek cam Miya ni.

Then papa belikan dutch pancake maker, but Mama selambe babe happy-happy buat takoyaki in it. Best oo berbuka makan takoyaki. Hihihihi...cam la Miya puasa kan?

*******

Then comes RAYA!!!!

Best tau biskut ni Miya buat. Pure chocs!! Dark choc & White choc, Miya likey!!

Haaa...Jemput-jemput la makan. Jangan malu, jangan segan. Miya masak sedap-sedap ni.

Ada nasi impit, ketupat palas, serunding kelapa, rendang ayam itam, nasi dagang & kuah kacang.

We all happy-happy beraya rumah kawan-kawan Mama.Psst- tgk tu, peyut Mama-miya (yg baju & pantz putih tu) dah besor. Mujor ada baju raya yg muat lg.

Pastu Miya attend birthday party kawan Miya. Best!!

Anyway, Miya bukan busy beraya aje tau. Banyak benda Miya kena buat ni.

Winter ends...So Miya started packing away all of those baju tebal-tebal.

And Miya mula kluarkan kipas-kipas yang dah lama tak berkhidmat.

Kan Tokma Miya ada kat sini, so we all rajin-rajin la kluar jalan-jalan.

Tapikan, boring sungguh bila Mama & Tokma sakan shopping. Macam tak ingat dunia. Boring la Miya tunggu-tunggu diaorang. Kalau shopping toys untuk Miya takpe jugak.

Pregnancy - Its the season to be complaining.

2010-10-04T13:50:00.003+11:00

This time around, there are 2 things that annoys me during the 2^nd trimester; It’s the pregnancy headache and excessive saliva. Almost every subuh I will wake up to a minor to throbbing headache and I think it’s due to the way my head and neck rest on the pillow. So silap position sikit aje, gerenti sakit kepala. Meanwhile, the other annoying excessive saliva buat mulut rasa pahit or loya. Pretty much annoying sebab kejap-kejap kena telan air liur.

So why are these things happening to this preggy me?

I found out that these headaches are caused by the progesterone boost in my body which causes the blood vessels to relax and not spasm. As the placenta continues to produce both progesterone and estrogen for the duration of the pregnancy and the levels get higher and higher right up to just before the birth.

During the pregnancy, the progesterone is needed in the following ways, (mostly in conjunction with estrogen):

Makes the endometrium develop and secrete fluids after being primed by estrogen
Maintains the functions of the placenta and fights off unwanted cells near the womb that could cause damage to the placenta or foetus.
Keeps the endometrium in a thickened condition
Stops the uterus making spontaneous movements
Stimulates the growth of breast tissue
Prevents lactation until after the birth (with estrogen)
Strengthens the mucus plug covering the cervix to prevent infection.
Strengthens the pelvic walls in preparation for labour.
Stops the uterus from contracting (thus keeping the baby where it is)
At the end of the pregnancy, the levels of progesterone secreted by the placenta drop off. It is this action that stimulates the beginning of the contractions that will lead to birth.

Some other effects on a woman due to raised levels of progesterone can include any or all of the following:

Constipation
Heartburn
Runny and irritable nose
Eyesight problems (blurring or headaches)
Increased kidney infection risk.

Now, that kinda make sense on why I am having excessive saliva recently.

Commonly, excessive salivation is a result of changing hormone levels. Excessive saliva may happen sporadically during periods of rapid hormonal fluctuation.

Some solutions I found on the internet:

Brushing their teeth multiple times each day helps relieve their symptoms, or at the very least makes the problem seem less annoying.
Drinking more water improves rather than worsens the condition. Your body may produce more saliva in response to dehydration.
Chewing gum or sucking hard candies helpful for at least taking their mind off the problem.

Care to share your tips on pregnancy headache and/or excessive saliva?

Most expensive shopping trip!!

2010-09-26T18:51:00.004+10:00

Sabtu lepas, hajat di hati nak pegi shopping kat DFO Essendon.

Tapi ngam-ngam at traffic light before bridge Bulla Rd, tiba-tiba kereta overheat.

We suspect the car overheat sebab kereta marah tukar radiator cap yg baru. Kereta ni memang berperangai gitu. Example; Bila the previous owner nak jual the car, dia nak la jual kereta tu dgn byk benda bertukar baru. Among the things dia tukar is the radiator cap. Radiator cap ni memang lah rupa dia dah lusuh sangat & the rubber washer dah pecah-pecah. We bought a new cover of the same shape & size, thinking it will be ok to just change it. Tapi we think wrong la kot. Gamoknye, the kereta merajuk la kot or like many Aussies, they are least tolerant to changes (But I fitnah/buat cerita, mmg mamat aussie toktok sendiri story to me ok). So it reject this wonderful new cap.

Back to my story, sebabkan we takut kereta berasap, we dimatikan engine kat this traffic light.

Jeng... jeng... jeng... Kereta tak bleh start.

Shimata!! We're blocking the traffic.

Selepas ditolak & ditarik (siap dgn bantuan polis lawa & enchem), we got the car safe on a grass island.

Ni gambar Tokma Miya geli hati nak cover macho bila orang lalu tengok-tengok we all.

The only option tinggal is to call RACV for road side assistance. Nak dapat bantuan tu kena jadi member dulu plak. So over the phone I became a member, paid $300++... Hangus $$ budget shopping.

And about 15-20mins after that, datanglah Ute RACV.

Papa-miya pun ber"g'day" and bersembang-sembang dgn En. Mekanik.

Katanye, maybe the car's head gasket dah blown. Then kereta tu tokleh start lepas matikan tu sebab bateri flat. Agaknye stress bateri tu, kena paksa-paksa start kereta berkali-kali.

En. Mekanik jumpstart the car dan dia pesan suruh balik rumah terus, jangan nak gatai-gatai singgah shopping mana-mana coz takut nnt enjin mati tokleh start lagi. Nanti-nanti baru take next action to repair the car. Janji we all balik rumah dengan selamat dulu.

Boohoo.. tak dapat la nak gi shopping kat DFO.

Memang betul la kereta ni merajuk, coz bila we all ganti to the old radiator cap, dia ok balik. Tak overheat pun on the way back.

So sementara mekanik tu sibuk baiki kereta, Miya piknik dulu makan kuih raya.

Ameeya & Adik!!

2010-09-23T19:27:00.002+10:00

Bila ditanya, "Mana Adik?".

Miya akan terus usap perut Mama & say "Adik tito dayam puyot mama".

Then she will kiss perut Mama & say " I love you adik".

Mommies Discussion! JOIN IN!!

2010-09-20T09:52:00.000+10:00

Just feel like having an open discussion here on the saying:

"Spare the rod and spoil the child"

If you have something to say about this, please share in the comment box.

Miya & Mama Busy....

2010-09-17T09:07:00.002+10:00

Hai hai semua...

Miya tengah busy beraya and excited tunggu Tokma Miya datang. Alamak, Tokma dah nak sampai. Rumah tak kemas lg. Naya la Miya kena bebel dengan Tokma nanti.

Mama pulak mula ada kelas next week.

Oklah... we all nak busy membusykan diri ni. Nanti kita story mory lagi ok?

Miya made a Father's Day Card!!

2010-09-03T13:48:00.001+10:00

When spring comes to Australia, so does Father's day. This sunday is father's day & look what Miya made for papa.

Miya Bergaya Untuk Raya!

2010-09-02T07:43:00.002+10:00

Bab nak melaram ni serahkan saja pada Miya, the Drama Princess!

That Irritating Habit- Whining!!

2010-09-01T11:22:00.003+10:00

Pregnancy is one of the things that can make a mom feels like she is up high on a throne in the sky and the next minute lost in the gutter. What can make it worse? It is when she is handling a “tantrum-lovin” toddler in her hands. Any moms out there who have experienced this would 100%ly understood on what I mean.

Alhamdulillah, Miya’s tantrum dah makin kurang lately.....However, a new things pula she pick up on. She learned the art of whining, using her voice tone along with her words in trying to get things to work her ways.

Okie, to me whining ni is not as bad as tantrum. Tantrum can make my blood boils. Tapi whining ni more of a very irritating habit that can make us feel very very “menyampah”.

With tantrums, kids thinks that crying can make things go their way because that is what they are used to as a baby. But now dia dah toddler who’ve learned a few vocabularies to request for things.

Anyway, it’s pretty normal for kids of any age can go through periods of whining, it's most common with two and three year olds.

According to Child Psychotherapist, Janet Morrison, whining seems to increase during those times in a child’s life when they feel frustrated with themselves. “It tends to come in periods of a child's development when they're a little overwhelmed, when the child is feeling that she's not coping very well, and when the child has an expectation of failure or disappointment,” explains Morrison. “The child who expects things to go well tends to holler or shout. The child who feels a little defeated or overwhelmed tends to whine.”

Miya ni sikit-sikit “Nooooooo”, “Stoooooooooooooop”, “Don’t toooooooooooooouch”, “Naaaaaaaaaaaak” or “Pleeeeeeeeeeaseeeeeeeeeeee” with a very pitch “mendayu” tone. Menyampah kan? Tapi rupanya ada bersebab juga whinning ni. It’s all about getting our attention when our child is not feeling great.

So what to do?

From my reading, experts say that do not give in to whining.

Firstly, we should do is learn to recognize on when our child will do her “whining performance”. Perhati dia mengantuk ke? Lapar ke? Tak puas hati with something ke? Terasa tak sihat ke?

Secondly, get them to stop using the whining voice. Let them know that we can only understand or listen to a proper or happy voice and not the whiny one. Example, when your toddler starts whining, dengan penuh selambe kita kata “Eeee, kenapa cakap merengek-rengek ni. Mama tak paham. Eee apa Miya nak cakap ni. Miya tak reti cakap elok-elok dah ke? Eee tak paham.” or “Stop whining and talk properly coz mama tak faham” or as repeatedly said by all nanny in Nanny 911 “Don’t whining. Use your proper words so that mummy can understand you or else she won’t listen”.

If they persists, repeat that you can’t listen to the whiny voice. Bila dia talk properly, we should praise them and attend to her needs as requested.

Another thing that might work is to ignore the toddler's whining. If there is no response to their whining, they will eventually stop. You have to be really patient because it is a long process that is going to have to be repeated consistently until they get the point.

So mommies, these are the stuff that kinda works for Miya & me. How about u?

"Miya ni ada nampak cam a whining girl ke aunties? Miya baik kan kan kan?" kata Miya proudly.

Surviving the 1st Trimester as a Not-So-Supermom

2010-08-25T07:19:00.004+10:00

Motherhood is perhaps the most wonderful and cherished stage of a woman's life. However, being a mother isn't always the easiest thing in the world..... especially if you are pregnant with your second child.

Second pregnancy is still special, but not as special as your first pregnancy. This time around, you are no longer a princess (boleh memanjakan diri or dimanja). You are a wife, a mother to your first born (it is more tiresome if you are still breastfeeding and your child is going thru the tantrum stage) and an oven to the bun that is growing healthily inside you.

You have a duty to make sure your household doesn't fall apart, a responsibility in mothering your child, an obligation to ensure your body is healthy for the growing foetus and most of all, ensuring that your darling husband doesn't feel neglected.

I guess Allah sahaja tahu betapa beratnya responsibility kita ni kan? Nak kena buat semua benda ni while being so tired, mabuk, cramping here and there, mood swings, no appetite and macam-macam lagi lah. Ni semua kerja durjana hormones la ni. We are not like our usual self. As for me, there are times I feel so frustrated with myself because I know I can do better or I know I can do it well if I am not pregnant, but nothing is happening.

So how are we going to perform our duty as a supermom while our hormones are shooting up to millions and being cruel to us. Here are some tips:

1) Have a strong mentality and always blame it on the hormones if things doesn't go well. I know playing blaming game is not good, but atleast it gives you a certain comfort after knowing your weakness.

2) Try not to be a control freak, as there are things we can and can't do.....and there are things beyond the control of a pregnant woman. Maybe dulu we can do a million things in 1 hour, but now it may take it a whole day or 2 to complete it. Or maybe dulu we do things in certain perfect way in the best manner, but now due to morning sickness or sakit-sakit badan, we do things less perfect. Don't sweat it, just syukur that atleast your get the job done. Work with the flow & not against them.

3) Ask (or beg) your hubby for help in completing certain chores that might be too "heavy" for you. As for me, usually I mintak hubby tolong buat laundry (no more heavy lifting for me after the spotting dulu), get groceries on the way home from work and at times bila I mabuk, I will ask him to do the cooking. Since I can't smell bahan tumis-tumis, usually I will prepare the stuff for cooking. Then I duduk jauh sikit (with tutup mulut & hidung dengan towel) while he cooks under my instruction. Tapi jangan lupa to appreciate and thank them ok? However, kalau suami tak dapat nak bantu apa-apa, mintak sajalah moral support, urut-urut skit and babysit anak while kita rest pun jadilah kan. Janji ada kita rasa that, "Yes we are functioning well as a team and in this together". Sometimes all we need is just a positive support to make the world a better place while we are having self-doubt.

4) Be comfortable. To be comfortable is to dress comfortable, to have a comfortable daily routine (plan & organize to make things easier to do) that works for a 1st trimester preggo, to do your daily chores comfortably at a comfortable pace, to have food that you are comfortable with, and many many more comfortable stuff that can help a tired/nauseated/moody pregnant mom go thru her day, without having a breakdown. It may sound mengada-ngada, but this is what works for us and the last thing we need is something stressful to add to the existing 1st trimester pressure.

These are a few stuff that works for me. How about you?

1st Trimester Screening

2010-08-23T13:55:00.003+10:00

Had my 1st screening today, Alhamdulillah everything is ok, cukup sifat & organs developing well. InsyaAllah baby low risk for Down Syndrome & Spina Bifida.

Adik Miya ni pun macam Miya jugak, bila scan being found that the development is advance by a week. So I suspect, awal jugak la kot deliver nnt, InsyaAllah....

As for me, Alhamdulillah masih berjaya berpuasa penuh sambil pregnant & breastfeeding. So far so good. Ada hari tu melepek jugak la, especially bila morning sickness datang.

As for Miya, makin petah berkata-kata tentang baby & kakak. Kekadang tu tiba-tiba aje dia kata "baby nangis..wek wek". Mana dia dengar? Entah. Tapi yang pastinya now dia dengan megahnya berkata "Ameeya Kakak Ok?"

Ni dia muka serius kakak tu.

Halal Meat?

2010-08-20T12:18:00.001+10:00

Pregnancy & Weird Dreams.

2010-08-16T12:32:00.004+10:00

Lately ni tidur dah mula tak lena. Bukan sebab fizikal or gangguan luaran, tapi gangguan mimpi.

During my 1st pregnancy, I did have some series of weird dream. Some buat I kerap terjaga. Some buat tak boleh lena terus after that. Most of them happen at 3rd trimester.

Tapi this time around it comes early. Almost every night and even during day nap, I will have mimpi yang karut sangat. Some are funny, some are horror, some mencabar iman/hati isteri/mother and some are totally 18sx. Hihihihi...Mimpi makan soup ular, mimpi anak hilang, mimpi ada darurat & terpisah dgn suami, mimpi kita bunuh orang, mimpi boleh terbang sambil jd super mom, mimpi jadi well respected leader, mimpi boleh maki mat motor harley sukasuki dan macam-macam lagi. tak boleh ku cerita detailnye. Biarlah rahsia. :P

So kenapa this is happening?

Tak silap, from my reading time 1st pregnancy dulu, weird dreams are common sebab our subconscious are flooded with worry thought for the unborn child plus the usual stuff we moms slalu worry (dah mmg semulajadi, we ladies think a lot). So luahan perasaan ni hanya can come through thru dreams. Jangan di interpret sebab its just a purge of our worrisome emotions. Bukanlah mimpi worth interpreting by Nabi Yusuf. Hik hik hik..

Moreover, our body tengah flooded by hormones. So hormones ni amplified pulak kuasa subconscious kita ni. As a result, slalu lah kita mimpi entah apa-apa.

Dreams can become very troublesome when they cause you to lose sleep. Worse case kalau kena insomnia. Dulu when it happened to me, I was up at 3am baking stuff and serve kat office. However, I takde la rasa letih or tak sihat. Tapi, there are a few women who will need to seek professional help due to the disturbing nature of the dreams that pregnancy brings on. If you feel like your dreams are causing a problem, you should seek the advice of your practitioner.

Last Week Yang Mencabar Iman

2010-08-09T07:32:00.006+10:00

Alhamdulillah last week berjaya jugak I ganti the remaining 3 days of puasa. Syukur sangat-sangat mabuk tak teruk sangat. However it was still a challenging week for me.

Puasa and low sugar level tu dah buat rasa giddy sikit-sikit, sekali Miya mula demam starting on Wednesday. She kept on touching her left ear, saying sakit. So I tot its an ear infection and buatlah apa-apa patut. Nak tak nak, layan aje lah kerenah dia. Tapi, demamnya makin teruk when Friday comes. During sleep she kept on twitching, you know macam kita tengah tidur and mimpi jatuh gaung tu.

I know the body twitching when the body heat & cold clashing. I guess demam Miya mmg makin teruk. So tengah-tengah winter yg sejuk gedi ni, I let Miya pakai baju nipis aje and every so often I will wipe badan dia dengan kain lembab.

Memang la mencabar iman melayan ragam dia while I tengah puasa and mabuk. Since Miya kuat menyusu, I bet my sugar level memang makin jatuh (semua benda tak larat, until chinta hati ku kena tolong buat laundry for the whole week).

Miya doesn't want to eat much, so I feed her icecream aje. Itupun, tak habis 1 cup. Imagine tu, budak makan icecream tak habis. So mesti memamg la tengah sakit giler kan?

Ended almost daily you will see this mother & daughter, baring cuddling depan tv melayan perasaan. Whatever susu yang mama boleh produce tu, Miya minum lah.

Finally its only yesterday I realized that rupanye one of her 2nd premolar cut out. Ya Allah, patut la anak aku demam panas. Kesian aje. Dah la ear infection, lepas tu naik pulak gigi garham. Sakit sakit sakit.

Ni belum lagi mula puasa. Jadinya doa-doa lah Ramadhan ni Allah permudahkan ibadah kita mommies ye. Amin...

--psst..i dah fall into cliché preggy moms yg tak larat/malas nak update blog. tunggu la hormones ni stabil sikit ye kawan-kawan, nnt kita cerita best-best lagi.

Breastfeeding benefits you from birth til death?

2010-07-28T11:06:00.000+10:00

New research has linked the nation's chronic disease burden with the absence of breastfeeding.

Thirty per cent of people aged between 35 and 40 were not breastfed as babies.

The Australian National University research assessed the outcomes of dozens of existing studies, with the aim of explaining what factors trigger chronic diseases such as diabetes, digestive diseases and heart problems.

Researcher Dr Julie Smith says she found adults who were prematurely weaned as infants are more likely to suffer in the long term, compared to those who were breastfed.

"The risk associated with lack of breastfeeding in infancy was 30 per higher for many conditions compared to breastfed infants," she said.

Dr Smith says mothers need more support in hospital and the community.

She is challenging federal, state and territory governments to do more to ensure breastfeeding is a realistic choice for mothers.

"The universal health recommendation is around six months of exclusive breast feeding," she said.

"With only half of women in Australia even making six months of breastfeeding, we have got a considerable way to go to make it possible for many women. Sometimes that is about parental leave."

Kisah ngidam yang karut-karut.

2010-07-26T15:19:00.002+10:00

Time pregnant Miya dulu takde la mengidam sangat takat nak gulai lemak udang my mom (2nd trimester), ice-cream baskin robin (tiap2 ahad), kopi ais Killiney Kopitiam (every weekday after lunch) and risotto (dekat2 nak bersalin). Alhamdulillah semua tu di layan.

So apa kisah mengidam adik Miya?

This time around, its more mengarut. Its early pregnancy, but selera I dah macam-macam dah. If I don't eat or food tak meet my craving, I akan mabuk. Lawak kan?

I pernah nak makan choc donut, halwa arab (tahiniya), choc pudding, air teh limau, nasi tumpang (mmg tak dpt layan ni sebab takde org kelantan terdekat boleh bantu), biskut colek dgn humus, tomato sos with almost everything (termasuk nasi), sour tape, and baru-baru ni bubur pulut hitam.

So mmg la mana boleh layan I layan. Mana mmg tak dapat tu, mintak maaf la ye selera weh.

Ni nak masak bubur pulut hitam ni, dok mencari beras tu since friday. Akhirnye jumpa jugak beras ni kat kedai Indon dekat dengan sekolah Miya. Sampai-sampai rumah aje, tak ingat benda lain, terus masak bubur. :D

Siap aje bubur, tak tunggu sejuk sikit pun. Terus bedal...Nikmat!!!

So itulah kisah mengarut I buat masa ni?

Care to share your kisah mengidam yang karut-karut?

Breastfeeding & Pregnancy

2010-07-22T15:11:00.002+10:00

Yay! I’ve reached a point where I can finally write about breastfeeding during pregnancy.

Eventhough Miya is over 2years old, I am still breastfeeding her. Bukan sebab sentimental, but more of convenience. So kalau I tengah mabuk-mabuk, tired tak larat nak sediakan food for her or we all tengah on the go while running errand, Miya still takkan kelaparan because I can just offer her some milk. My milk is always nutritious and the best food Miya could have. Her feeding amount pun dah reduced, yet I know that the immunological benefits are still very valuable.

So how does it feel?

As early as 4weeks pregnant, during breastfeeding I terasa sakit kat nipple. The pain is similar to the feeling when I first breastfeed Miya after her birth while having a cracked nipple. It feels like the kid’s mouth have this powerful suction. Ada rasa macam budak tu mengigit juga, walaupun sebenarnya dia menyusu saja. Also I feel tired frequent and bila menyusu lama sikit, badan rasa lenguh/sengal.

Happily I declare that breastfeeding during pregnancy is not a problem for me.

However, baru-baru ni after a series of blood test, I found that almost everything is ok. Its just that I kena vitamin D deficiency. Nasib la kan, dah le pregnant sambil menyusu, pastu now tengah winter pulak. Mana nak cari matahari sihat. Matahari pun segan-segan nak kluar.

The doctor said there shouldn’t be any problem for a pregnant mom to continue nursing, but she reminded me that I should really really really take a good care of my diet and never miss without a “pregnancy & breastfeeding multivitamin”.

She said for normal and healthy pregnancy (with no previous history of miscarriage in the first 20 weeks or preterm labour after 20 weeks) there is no evidence to suggest breastfeeding is threatening to a pregnancy. If you do miscarry, it is unlikely to be because you are breastfeeding. There is no such thing that breastfeeding is taking 'the goodness away from the unborn baby'.

Dah memang Allah tu Maha Kuasa kan? In reality it is your unborn baby has the first call on all the nutrients it needs, the second is your breastfeeding child and lastly whatever nutrient left is for the mother. Memang Allah dah jadikan badan mothers like that. Kasih saying ibu tu not limited to perasaan aje tau.

Miya's 1st Catfight!!

2010-07-21T07:17:00.003+10:00

While I was busy being poked and tested in the ER, Miya had her 1st cat fight.

Bila Miya & Papa-nya masuk dalam ER, the minute Miya nampak Mama, terus la dia drama; mengadu sakit kena cakar.

Papa-Miya & I dunno the whole story, so we all malas la nak fuss about it. For all we know, entah-entah Miya yang cari pasal dulu. Or you know, kids being kids. Sometimes ada problem with sharing. They might push or rampas stuff from each other, in which might spark a fight.

Anyway, bagus gak la whatever 1st aid yang cikgu dia bagi tu. Papa-nya said the cikgu gave a cold compression and apa entah lagi. Memula I saw part kena cakar tu, it was bright red. But a bit later, makin kurang merahnya. See dalam gambar-gambar ni, that is about 4-5 hours after I 1st saw her in the ER.

My 2nd Pregnancy- No such thing as a confident pregnancy!!

2010-07-20T16:55:00.005+10:00

It's time to make it official. Yes Mommies, I'm pregnant!!

Well... we found it out early as soon as the 5th week because we were trying for our 2nd child and the minute my period was late, with no hesitation I did the home-pregnancy-test.

Alhamdulillah this time around the morning sickness is not as bad as when I was carrying Miya. Teringat lagi kisah 6weeks pregnant with Miya, when I was hospitalized for 3days & kena drip about 14 bags of fluids. The morning sickness was so bad. I could not hold anything down to the point I was severly dehydrated.

For this 2nd pregnancy, so far I will feel mabuk if my tummy build up wind sebab kosong. Memang lah kerja I kena makan aje. Tapi makan sikit-sikit aje. If too much, there comes the heartburn or bubling gas. Haa..pastu rasa senak or nak muntah la.

Now 8 weeks pregnant, something similar of both pregnancy occurs. Last Saturday I started to have spotting. I didn't pay much attention as I thought that it might have something to do with my UTI. However, the spotting becomes heavier when Monday comes. Suddenly I mula teringat my bleeding during early pregnancy time carry Miya. At that time the doctor gave me a hormonal jab (dah le mahal RM120 sekali cucuk, sakit giler plak tu) and I was put to bed rest for a few days.

Thinking that this is a similar case, I called my GP and she told me to rush to the ER of the Women's Hospital that I've registered with. After almost 5hours with them, 1 urine test, 1 blood test, basic medical check-up, 1001 questions of medical history, 2 uterine sample; the doctor finally concluded that my pregnancy is safe for now and almost everything doesn't point to the miscarriage. However, they are not 100% sure unless I come over again the next day for an ultrasound scan.

And so, the next day, tergedek-gedek Miya & I jalan to the ER for that Ultrasound appointment. Yang bengkeknye, since we are at the ER, they will have to make way for more urgent case dulu. Jadinya berjanggut la Miya menunggu and Mama-nya nak terlelap-lelap dah.

Anyway, Alhamdulillah bila scan, we saw the heartbeat. Miya pun cam pelik aje. Gambar apa doktor tunjuk kat screen tu. I said "Miya, that's your adik". Dia makin blur kat situ. Gelak aje la I, the Midwife & the Doctor.

So the doctor concluded that the ada luka sikit aje. Dunno the reason. Maybe ada silap ke or terlasak or maybe the baby is just growing fast. Only if the bleeding doesn't stop in another week or 2, I kena rush to the ER again.

The lesson I learned here, there is no such thing as a confident pregnancy even though you have had the experience before. Worrying is the key to a healthy pregnancy..hahahhahha...But over-worrying is another. :P

If any moms out there are planning for 2nd pregnancy, I would recommend on getting your hand on this book "Twice Blessed" . It was one of my must haves and now I'm enjoying the read.

2-3years old Creative Activities

2010-07-09T09:30:00.003+10:00

At the age of 2-3 years old, it is natural for a child to become more creative & imaginative.

He/she will learn the function of a paint brush strokes or a line from a crayon. From a certain combination of lines/strokes, the child can create shapes. Shapes can then create characters.

From there, their imagination and pretend play are in use.

Here's what we did today with coloured papers, scissors, glue, hole puncher, pen & marker.

We made Baa Baa Fashionista Sheep With Pink Shoes.

And Itsy Bitsy Witsy Stylo Spider.

After dah siap the artwork, try to get the child to explain or tell a story about the artwork. Then you tell your version of the story pula.

And the Crown goes to.....

2010-07-06T10:23:00.001+10:00

Bahagia sangat hati dia dapat ada crown sama macam princess dalam kartun tu.

Syok Tengok Anak Berselera Makan

2010-07-05T12:55:00.003+10:00

Toddler DIY Project - Pasta Craft!!

2010-07-02T10:03:00.003+10:00

Miya & Mama Busy Pampering Ourselves

2010-06-30T14:52:00.002+10:00

Cam ni la gaya kitorang berdua tiap-tiap hari. Berendam dalam tub. Best woo berendam air panas di tengah winter ni.

Budak Yang Malas Gi Sekolah

2010-06-28T14:20:00.002+10:00

Do I have to? Tak boleh stay at home with mama ke? Tolong mama kemas rumah kan kan kan?

Last-last, at 10am mama hantar juga budak ni pergi sekolah....

In the name of Art?

2010-06-25T16:26:00.001+10:00

Si Muncung Pipi Molat?

2010-06-25T15:33:00.002+10:00

Home remedy for Mama & Toddler

2010-06-24T09:31:00.003+10:00

No drugs and great for pregnant mom, breastfeeding mom & lil kids.

-psst..i'm still under the weather...ouchie.........

Cerita Makanan & Masakan Lagi

2010-06-22T09:52:00.003+10:00

I'm a bit under the weather....tapi nak blogging gak.. Rasa itchy kalau blog dah 2-3 hari tak update.

Since I didn't read much & have not much words in my numb brain, kita cerita pasal makanan aje la melalui cerita bergambar.

1)Pumpkin+cheese muffin.

Actually pretty easy to make, macam buat muffin biasa. Pukul butter, egg, gula, milk & pumpkin until sebati. Then fold in flour, baking powder & a bit garam.

Scoop into cups, letak cheese kat tengah-tengah & bakar til golden.

2) Salad "guilty conscious".

Sebab nak makan ayam deep fried gitu ala-ala popcorn chicken, kena la contra dengan green vege. Great balance meal for Mom & Daugther.

3) Puffy Spinach Cheese.

4) Pasta jahat tapi banyak khasiat.

Mula-mula buat bechamel sauce.

Pastu rebus la any pasta yang ada dalam your pantry.

At 200deg C, roast pumpkin & onion with a dash of olive oil.

Now gaulkan semua bahan, letak bits of meatball & topped with the bechamel sauce. Then bakar til golden brown or some parts are crispy.

Nikmati tengah panas-panas.....

Its never too young to do housework...

2010-06-18T16:08:00.002+10:00

Lepas Miya dah vacuum ni, jangan gatal-gatal nak sepah and buat kotor..ok?

Hish...Vacuum mama ni harap aje besar, tapi tak power. Pakai vacuum Miya yg lagi hebat. Its green & it talks.

Manners Matters

2010-06-16T14:13:00.007+10:00

Kalau Melayu dia seloka, kalau Melayu dia bermadah, kalau Melayu manis bicara, Kalau Melayu manis bahasa.... I think I got all the wording right from a song by Ahli Fiqir, I once suka sebelum jadi mak mak ni.

I teringat these lyrics as I was sitting down with a coffee while watching the breakfast show on7 this morning. They were discussing about Suri Cruise yang ada potensi to be a brat as she is now being treated as a little diva. Then they discussed on manners to teach our kids untuk elakkan dari jadi brat, eventho we shower them with luxury like a little diva.

Memang lah we all want our children to be well-mannered, but we also know how hard it is to convince them to do anything, much less be polite and respectful. I remember my own difficulties dari kecil sampai lah nak jadi bini orang, getting remark where someone said “Modern and educated sangat sampai lupa adap. Mat salleh sangat la tu”. What the f... , indeed....

Could it be that I was too into intellectual & modern stuff, till I lupa adat & adap Melayu? Could it be that the current generation of interlectual have discarded themselves from being bounded to adat & adap? Could it be we watch too much American movies & tv shows, yang buat kita Melayu terikut-ikut akan simple lifestyle where certain stuff aje matters and we don't need to sweat the small stuff yg adat kita suruh?

Tapi after a while menetap di rantau orang, I could feel that its not just Melayu facing this kind of problem. Commonly I find mat salleh pun having problem sama. Biasanya yang buat macam-macam would be the young kids, while pakcik makcik matsalleh ni cukup manis sopan santunnya. Murah senyum, selalu greet me eventho I wanita bertudung and even main-main dengan Miya macam cucu sendiri.

So? Apa sudah jadi until its giving such result toward the younger generation? Could it be poor role models on television or persekitaran anak? What can we do?

After dah membaca from a few articles from many various expert, I share with you the summary:

· Sopan Santun berbicara: Bila kita bercakap or sambil-sambil membebel menyusu or tukar nappy dia, kita cakap lembut-lembut. Never ever forget “please” and “thank you”.

· Sentuhan/Socialize Penuh Love & Care: No biting, No hitting, Loads of XOXO, pat a pet. Experts shows, kalau dari kecik anak dah biasa begini, anak takkan opt to violence when frustrated.

However, ni maybe a bit susah nak apply for kids yang most of the time duduk kat daycare and exposed to many kids with many attitude. Young kids only paham the concept of “an eye for an eye”, so kalau orang buat aku gitu, aku patut bela diri and buat balik kat orang lain. Then all of a sudden it became a common attitude acceptable among toddlers at daycare. Even Miya yang pegi daycare seminggu sekali ni pun ada aje attitude tak best dia pick up cam, jerit-jerit bila mintak benda & hit bila marah. I'm not blaming anyone but dah mmg children live what they learn. Cepat menangkap & applies what works for them. We should remind anak kita “an eye for an eye can make the world go blind”. So what can we do? If we see such No-No attitude going on at home, we must put a stop to it. Make them realize that these kind of No-No does not work. I know its a bit leceh, but believe me, kalau kita dok pahat ukiran cantik kat anak kita, insyaAllah ternampak hasil dia suatu hari nanti.

· Hormat: Practice well-mannered activities in front of your baby, cam hold the door for someone, kata sorry or excuse me bila terlanggar orang, tolong angkat benda jatuh or say thank you after orang tolong kita or bagi barang kat kita.

Lepas tu bebel lak kat anak kata, kita kena buat camtu. Kena tolong orang or hormat orang. Kita kena hormat orang kalau nak orang hormat kita. InsyaAllah anak akan register dalam otak, then learn to make sense of the action & menunggu masa aje untuk apply it to his/her life.

· Sabar: Ni antara benda paling tough untuk tanam dalam diri anak especially dia going through the “terrible two” stage. Tapi nak tak nak we must, kalau tak for the rest of his/her life dia bawak perangai tu. I read it helps by putting one hand on the child’s shoulder while with a serious voice we say “sabar/wait/tunggu/patient”. I also rajin bagi anak makan kurma, as it helps untuk bina kesabaran anak.

One simple thing as basic as life itself, try to practise what your religion ask you to do. Islam, Christian, Buddha, Hindu, Judaism, Taoism, Confucius and many more...semua have the same basic. Do good to other as how you will do good to yourself, Don't harm other as much as you don't want yourself to suffer from other's harm,...and commit actions or support action contributing to WORLD PEACE.

Sapa sokong saya angkat tangan!!

Among the Joy of Having a Daughter

2010-06-16T11:49:00.001+10:00

Latest Pasta Experiment - Canneloni

2010-06-13T10:25:00.008+10:00

Bosan-bosan hari sabtu, I tried making cannelloni. Dah lama teringin, tapi rajinnye tu baru datang semalam..Huhuhu.

So what is Cannelloni?

Cannelloni (Italian: large reeds) are rectangular pastasheets that are rolled into acylindrical shape encompassing a filling. After a pasta sheet has been boiled, it is typically filled with a savory stuffing which may include ricotta cheese,spinach, and various meats. It is then covered with a sauce, typically a classic tomato orbéchamel sauce. Cannelloni is often erroneously referred to asmanicotti (Italian: sleeves) (English pronunciation: /ˌmænɨˈkɒtiː/), the latter being a pre-shaped tube that is then stuffed.^[1] Although both terms are plural nouns in Italian, the English term is often construed as singular, particularly when used as the name of the dish.

Bahan-bahan basic yg di perlukan: Onion, Mince Beef, Cheese, Tomato Puree/ Diced Tomato, Bechamel Sauce, Butter, Large Tube Pasta/Lasagne Sheet, Italian Herbs, Garam, Gula & Ground Pepper.

How to prepare?

1) Brown the mince beef with onion & butter.

2) Now matikan api & curahkan pre-prepared bechamel sauce.

3) Sumbat daging+bechamel sauce in the pre-cooked tube pasta. If you are using lasagne sheet, letak inti di tengah & gulung aje cam gulung kebab. Then susun nicely on baking tray.

4) Now to prepare the Tomato Sauce, caramel the onion with butter. Then add can of tomato puree. Let it simmer until pekat. Add garam, gula & italian herbs to your taste.

5) Now curah the tomato sauce on the well lined pasta.

6) Curah lak bechamel sauce or tabur mozzarella cheese. Tabur italian herbs & pepper.

7) Bake 'em in 170-200 degree Celsius oven until its crispy & a bit golden brown.

Verdict: Licin 3branak makan for dinner.........It taste almost like lasagne, tapi lagi yummy with ada pasta yg lembut & parts yang crispy. Since tak banyak sangat tomato sause, the cheese & cream memang over power, sampai boleh rasa kejahatannye..Muahahhahhaa...

For them yang tak sure how I make this can watch this video:

How To Make Baked Cannelloni

Homeschool Craft- Ulat Gonggok!!

2010-06-11T10:28:00.002+10:00

Weird but Not Sure if its True

2010-06-10T12:00:00.004+10:00

I was blogwalking & I found a lady arguing about this:

One of Sunni Islam's most prestigious institutions is to discipline a cleric after he issued a decree allowing women to breastfeed their male colleagues.

Dr Izzat Atiya of Egypt's al-Azhar University said it offered a way around segregation of the sexes at work.

His fatwa stated the act would make the man symbolically related to the woman and preclude any sexual relations.

The president of al-Azhar denounced the fatwa, which Dr Atiya has since retracted, as defamatory to Islam.

According to Islamic tradition, or Hadith, breast-feeding establishes a degree of maternal relation, even if a woman nurses a child who is not biologically hers.

'Family bond'

In his fatwa, Dr Atiya, the head of al-Azhar's Department of Hadith, said such teachings could equally apply to adults.

He said that if a woman fed a male colleague "directly from her breast" at least five times they would establish a family bond and thus be allowed to be alone together at work.

"Breast feeding an adult puts an end to the problem of the private meeting, and does not ban marriage," he ruled.

"A woman at work can take off the veil or reveal her hair in front of someone whom she breastfed."

The legal ruling sparked outrage throughout Egypt and the Arab world.

On Sunday, Dr Atiya retracted it, saying it had been the result of a "bad interpretation of a particular case" during the time of the Prophet Muhammad.

Egypt's minister of religious affairs, Mahmoud Zaqzouq, has called for future fatwas to "be compatible with logic and human nature".

So what do you mommies think?

Homeschool activity to encourage toddler's speech

2010-06-09T10:07:00.004+10:00

From Ken Adams book, I learned that we can accelerate a toddler's speech development by getting the child to create mental images by using the 5 senses; sight, sound, touch, taste & smell.

It has been proven that such activities will strengthen the child's ability to match new experienced with the any old memories.

The wonderful thing about it is that the child's brain will then work harder and grew to be faster in connecting the data gained from each experience.

So contoh activities yang guna almost all of the senses, Main masak-masak:

1) In small portions, letak any spices, salt & pepper in small cups or bowl.

2) Let your child see it & tanya what does it look like. Then we explain the color & shape.

3) Let your child touch it & tanya how does it feel. Then kita pulak explain about the touch.

3) Let your child smell it & tanya if it smell nice or not.

4) Let your child taste it & tanya sedap ke tak. Then explain about the taste and function of the taste.

5) Sama-sama dengan anak try to crush or snap the spice and see her reaction. Then kita explain what is the name of the sound & why does it make such sound bila kita buat gitu.

Ada macam movie "Mistress of Spices" tu tak. Train budak-budak memahami dunia melalui spices.

Have fun. InsyaAllah this will multiple the child's encyclopaedic ability & increase her vocabulary in improving her speech.

Methods to Create A Genius?

2010-06-04T10:15:00.001+10:00

As I have mentioned before geniuses are born every day and most of them are in a "coma". Without the right therapy, these geniuses will continue to be in coma, where most of them will never receive the depth of intellectual nurturing required to push that genius into full bloom.

I found this book yesterday and totally fell in love with it.

The book was designed to help us to stimulate the learning response in newborns through age 11. The writer shares practical exercises and interactive activities that can enhance a child’s motivation in growing their mind.

Its is quite convenient for us mommies as the book outlines some activities are sorted by age-group. The writer provided concepts introduced using a proven methodology and covering such topics as color and pattern recognition, the physical world, mathematics, nature, reading and writing, using computers, and more, all communicated in a way that will bring out the best in every child. From there, we mommies can adjust it to the suitability of our child's personality and interest.

Pendek kata, even a mom who is not highly educated pun boleh produce a bona fide genius.

Interested? Go and get your copy.

Simple Reminder to a Happy Family?

2010-06-01T15:03:00.004+10:00

1) Share load of laughter together.

2) Concentrate on what you have & not on what you don't. Secara tak langsung, you'll be makhluk Allah yang paling bersyukur.

3) Share your happiness as a couple with the children too. Suami Isteri sentiasa how their love and in a way akan create a sense of security for the kids.

4) Be happy with less. Minimalist is the new trend. So when something extra happen, it will be a huge surprise & make everyone in the family smile.

5) Make you home a place of kind words. Leave your stress & vocab kata-kata busyuk kat luar pagar rumah.

6) Believe in each other & try to have yinyang relationship at home. Kalau sorang stress, sorang lg tukang ceriakan. Kalau sorang in a hard time & making a hard choice, believe in them.

7) Offer praise & constructive criticism only.

8) Worry less. Have faith in what Allah have decided for us.

9) Always share a meal. A family that eats together sticks together.

Kalau mommies ada lagi tips berkesan, share la in the comment box.

Shhhhhh...Miya (and Mama) Busy Creating Masterpiece Ni

2010-05-28T08:18:00.004+10:00

Yummy Recipe of Soy Goodness

2010-05-27T07:39:00.005+10:00

Among my favourite food, most of them would be made out of soy. Truthfully, as a child, I really hate anything with soy, except for kicap. But as I grow older, my body have always craved for soy based food; Soymilk, tofu, miso soup, vege burger and many more.

Tapi bila dah lama duduk merantau ni, dah lama tak merasa air soya. Dulu boleh beli air soya segar tiap-tiap pagi on the way to work. Kat sini mana nak cari, daaa..Ada yang jual kat supermarket dah siap bottled tu la. Tak best, takde feel...

So I decided to try make some on my own.

Mula-mula, soak about half-kilo of soya bean overnight or for about 10-12 hours. Ada some people suggest to soak them up to the max of 18 hours, nak bagi betul-betul lembut and a quick tip here, make sure tukar air rendaman ni every 4 or 6 hours (depends on cuaca kita). Ini akan elak dari air tu mula berbau. Kalau air berbau, air soya ni takkan menjadi.

Then drain the beans and blend them with some water, mixture of 1 cup of bean to 3cups of drinking water.

Once its all done, we can start letting it simmer slowly to a boil. Sambil-sambil dia mula mengelegak tu, we scoop out all of the scum or foam yang terhasil.

After dah scoop all of the scum, it will look a bit like this.

Bila dah naik bau, boleh masukkan perisa (vanilla bean/daun pandan/ halia) dan gula (merah/kabung/raw sugar).

Matikan api bila the soymilk dah reach kepekatan yang kita suka.

Biarkan dia suam kejap, then tapis guna cheese cloth or muslin cloth.

Now your soymilk will look as yummy as this.

Okie now....what to do with hampas soya tu. Mat salleh panggil tu "okara". Some used them to make vege burger and for a larger scale, diorang bagi makan kat binatang ternakan. However, my MIL gave me an interesting suggestion, buat CEKODOK.

So I tried mixing it with sikit tepung (binding agent supaya dia tak brittle), egg, air, garam, ikan bilis and daun bawang. With all mixed until I reached the consistency of a vadeh punye mixture, I deep frying them.

Inilah hasilnya....Sedap oooo.. Crispy outer and soft inside. Memang macam kacukan vadeh+cekodok. Colek pulak dengan cili sos yang manis cam cili sos lingham or colek keropok kelatan. Peeeergh.....

The best part, tak rasa bersalah sangat makan deep fried food ni sebab dia penuh khasiat..Muahahhahhahahha.... Suka suki aje buat alasan nak makan evil food.. Hahhahaha....

Reminder: Stroller related accident.

2010-05-26T13:08:00.007+10:00

I just read this news on "the Age":

MEGAN LEVY, May 26, 2010 - 12:46PM

A baby boy has survived after he was hit by a train in Melbourne’s south-east this morning.

The 15-month-old was in a pram that rolled off the platform at Tooronga railway station in Malvern about 11.15am.

The city-bound train hit the pram and pushed it along the train tracks, but remarkably the baby escaped with only minor grazing and bruising to his face.

Paramedics arrived to find the boy conscious, alert and crying. He has been taken to the Royal Children’s Hospital in a stable condition.

Ambulance Victoria spokesman Paul Bentley said the baby was with his grandmother and three-year-old brother at the time of the accident.

‘‘The grandmother didn’t see it. One minute the pram was on the platform, the next it wasn’t,’’ Mr Bentley said. ‘‘The child is incredible lucky.’’

Metro spokesman Chris Whitefield said the train involved was the 10.56am city-bound train from Glen Waverley.

He said it was travelling at a very low speed at the time.

The train was held at Tooronga station while a replacement driver was found, and delays of at least 50 minutes are expected on the Glen Waverley line.

"Obviously it’s shocking for all involved," Mr Whitefield said.

The boy is the second child to survive being hit by a train in Melbourne in less than a year.

-last year punye case pulak was a combo of baby, stroller tak put on brake & angin kuat.

- so apa lessonnya?

- syukur each time ada case gini, budak tu tak teruk sgt injure. rasa cam ada guardian angel lak kan?

Boobfeed obsessed Baby?

2010-05-25T16:10:00.001+10:00

Miya Busy Tau..

2010-05-25T10:14:00.001+10:00

Orang suruh tolong buat laundry, dia ngelat pulok.

HOW TO MULTIPLY YOUR BABY’S INTELLIGENCE? (Part 6- Homeschooling by Professional Mother)

2010-05-21T08:00:00.004+10:00

Things to dive in as a professional mother to start homeschooling your child:

1) Respect & trust your child in the learning process. Eventho kita cikgu, we hold no absolute power. It takes 2 to tango.

2) When in doubt, believe in you child. I know kita akan tertanye, “ye ke anak aku paham & belajar ni”. Percayalah, dia absorb apa kita teach.

3) Always tell your child the truth. Kalau anak tanya benda, answer it honestly, factually & penuh semangat. So kita kena bersedia berilmu la sebelum nak mengajar tu. Anak kita bijak, kalau kena klentong. Nanti dia takkan respect kita as the teacher.

4) Don’t hesitate nak express your opinion too. Example anak tanye kenapa kita kena solat or baca doa. Kita jawab ikut hukum, ikut apa yg fakta tentang solat and bg tau opinion kita napa penting kita solat & berdoa. In away anak akan faham akan kepentingan & applikasi. Same goes for reading & counting.

5) Kenal pasti when is the best time to teach. Tengok mood & see apa yg sesuai to teach according to that mood.

6) Set the best environment to learn too. Kalau nak belajar thru video, on video. Kalau nak read, off TV or jauhkan dr gangguan. Kalau nak do math or paint, its ok to put on some classical music. Kalau kluar shopping or run errand, ajar dia the process & steps, ala-ala class trip gitu.

7) Set proper learning duration. Kalau anak dah tunjuk gaya bosan or mula hilang attention, do something else or rehat.

8) Kena tahu cara mengajar kena ikut age and keep the “classroom” alive. Yang penting, kita kenali pace anak kita camne. Kalau dia senang catch up, boleh cram more things. But kalau kita sedar anak kita slow skit, ringankan subject tapi banyakkan repeat.

9) Learning material. Google & learn before you teach. Then never limit the media of learning. Do papers, video, physical activities & even PC games or Wii.

10) Organization & consistency. Ni mmg a bit susah for me coz I teach ikut mood Miya. But from my reading, janji daily tu ada a focus subject, kira ok dah tu. The more we apply, the better it can do to our kids.

11) Testing- Jangan buat exam. But soal semula somethings kita pernah ajar. Contoh, anak tanye kita why is the sky blue or the trees green and kita dah explain all about it. So kita test dia buat-buat cam tanya as if kita tak tau. See how far dia boleh jawab.

Overall kena ada KESABARAN in educating these eager spirits....kan?

-summary of what I read in Glenn Doman's book.

Some more cerita masak-masak..

2010-05-20T10:25:00.006+10:00

This week I tried making.....

Nasi Dagang; beras ni my Mama bawa dulu.. kena try masak gak....

Since takde steamer, I pakai tapis besi letak atas periuk as my steamer. bijak tak..bijak...huhuu..

Quick tip here, beras nasi dagang ni kena rendam semalaman, kalo tak nnt berzaman la kena tunggu stim nak lembut. I think maybe dia catagory brown rice, like other brown rice, dia cam kering2 skit kan?

So nnt nasi ni di masak cam biasa la with fenugreek, onion, garlic, halia & santan. lg lemak lg best...huhuhuhu..jahat...evil...

As for the kuah, selama ni I masak takat level assistant chef kat kampung. Ikut aje arahan apa Mama suh buat. So ni 1st time buat sendiri-sendiri...Hantam saja.

Mula-mula, rebus ikan dengan gula melaka/kabung and asam keping for about 30mins. Then biarkan dia mesra semalaman.

Esoknye baru tumis the usual stuff (cili kering, garlic, onion, lengkuas, halia, jintan putih, jintan manis). Tumis til garing & masukkan ikan & air rebusan from semalam tu.

Bring it to boil & masukkan santan. Then kalau nak pedas ikut cita rasa, masukan cili padi sebijik2, jgn pecah/potong.

Now just simmer til sampai kepekatan yg kita suka. Sebelum matikan api add salt.

Ni cara my mom & grandma buat. But truthfully, time I buat ni, warna & kepekatan dia tak best, so I tambah 2 sudu serbuk kurma. :D terus menjadi..hahahahha...

Strawberry & Cheese Tart; Pretty simple, but my crust tak sedap sgt. I think terlebih air..so kurang crispy. But the lemakness of the cheese compensate for whatever is lacking..Jahat......Evil...HUHUHUHU..

Meatball Sandwich; first buat meatball (mincebeef+tuscan seasoning+chopped onions+splash of lime juice) & then masak dlm italian tomato sos (ala2 sos spageti tu la). Let it simmer til kuah jd pekat.

Then susun atas roti, topped with cheese & masuk dlm oven kejap til cheese cair & roti garing.

Nikmat.................

Ni la yang I dah cuba this week..Malam ni cam nak try masak korean meal lak....

HOW TO MULTIPLY YOUR BABY’S INTELLIGENCE? (Part 5- Early Education Will Make the Kid Bored Attending Primary School?

2010-05-19T09:34:00.004+10:00

Over years, there has been a myth about "Early Education Will Make the Kid Bored Attending Primary School". How far is this true?

Some mothers ask "If I teach my child to read/write/count before he goes to school, won't he be bored when he goes to school?" or a familiar phrase we commonly hear among malay moms “Kecik-kecik ni pegi sekolah, nanti bila masuk darjah satu dia dah takmo pegi sekolah sebab bosan”.

This question is easy to answer....school is boring.

Tak kisah la subject apa yang anak akan belajar dari darjah satu sampai tingkatan lima, if the teaching method is too text book and got no indication of it’s application to daily life, ANAK SURELY AKAN BOSAN.

Unless....... she goes to an extraordinarily fine and very unusual school (sekolah yang tak guna common learning method or syllabus outlined by the ministry of education), you can bet your butts she'll be bored in school.

If she's very bright, she will be bored in school. If she's average, she will be bored in school. If she's not very bright, she'll be bored in school.

Generally,memang sekolah ni membosankan for kids. Even I as adult masih teringat betapa bosannya sekolah ni. Mendengar cikgu mengajar, cuba make sense apa cikgu cuba mengajar ni, mencuba latihan yang cikgu berikan, and then mengeluh bila cikgu bagi homework.....hmm....

So the question here is not "Will they be bored?" Diorang memang akan bosan punya lah.

Sepatutnya kita tanye, "How can one deal with boredom?" or “Apa kita bleh bantu untuk pastikan anak kita tak bosan belajar di sekolah?”.

Actually children deal brilliantly with boredom, and the brighter they are, the better they deal with it. From what I understand from buku Glenn Doman, he said that kalau anak kita bijak berfikir, dia akan bijak mencari cara untuk hilangkan kebosanan dia. Dia akan cari solution instead of just complaining about it.

This is also part of the stuff I mention in my previous post, where anak yang bijak akan ada kurang attitude problem, sebabnya dia bijak berfikir akan solution or cause and action. Dia tahu, takde maknanya kalau dia put up attitude because it will not bring solution, malah akan mendatangkan more problem.

Dengan cara ni, walau sebosan mana anak dlm kelas, dia akan cuba sedaya upaya untuk approach the study in another way to keep her interested.

Yang pentingnya, now we must be a help to them in dealing with boredom. Jangan biarkan dia bosan and stress seorang diri.

Sementara anak kita belum masuk sekolah lagi ni, kita try all kinds of method yang boleh keep our kid interested in learning. Kalau anak kita attention span kurang time kita homeschool dia, cuba pikir macam-macam cara to keep them interested. Contoh; while we teach them counting with object, dia mula tunjuk bosan, tukar method to something else. Try ajak main kejar-kejar or panjat tangga while counting tambah tolak. Or maybe we can ask them to draw 5 apples and 2 banana, then ask what is the total numbers of fruits dia dah lukis. Janji kita dapat attention anak untuk belajar mengira in 1full hour.

Care to share what you're doing to teach your kid on how to deal with boredom?

I have mixed feeling about stopping breastfeeding Miya, but..

2010-05-16T15:42:00.003+10:00

I love breastfeeding Miya. All I know its a free milk which is the best that the world can offer.

However, I'm worried about families & friends being judgemental over this matter.

I know ikut Islam, it takes 2 years to complete the child's breastfeeding needs...but nothing says it's a sin to continue breastfeeding a kids above 2years old.

Then I came across this article by Dr Sears. http://www.parenting.com/article/Baby/Feeding/Ask-Dr-Sears-Extended-Breastfeeding----Handling-the-Criticism

Very comforting, but will it help me to fight off those "judgements"?

What say you?

Cerita Masakan Lagi

2010-05-14T08:15:00.008+10:00

Bagus gak dok overseas ni kan, nak tak nak I kena gak masak. So in a way bleh la improve skill sikit. Kalo kat Msia tu, teringin aje masih bleh jalan-jalan cari makan.

Best part, anak dara I ni fussy eater, kalau bila Mama dia masak lain dari lain, higher change untuk dia makan banyak sikit dari biasa.

So apa new stuff yang Mama try masak?

Pasta Campak-campak...Mula-mula serve to Miya dia punye expression cam "eee apa ni..banyak vege..eeee". Tapi lepas sesuap, licin satu pinggan dia bedal.

Hottie in Puffy, Sausage Tomato Basil Wrapped in Puff Pasry (ALDI brand, guna tanpa was was). Very simple to make coz everything is frozen, I just have to wrap it & bakar.

My 1st attempt in making Rojak Singapore. Papa Miya teringin, maybe rindu kampung halaman la tu. Never tot senang aje nak masak kuah dia. Rebus keledek til empuk & then blend. Then 1/4 cup water+ 1-3 sudu kecil serbuk cili, bring to boil. Masukkan blended keledek tadi. Masukkan kacang yang dah di tumbuk. For tasting, pour in lots of sugar & a bit of salt. Kalau ada bijan, just toss in a bit. I didnt have any, so tak letak. So just let it boil til reach kepekatan di sukai hati. Dah siap...

Rojak for Baby Bear

Rojak for Big Bear

Sup Kambing!!! Great dish for winter times.

I tried cooking Mee rebus, but using rencah instant my mom bawa from Malaysia. Kinda nice. I rebus beef ribs till empuk. Take out the daging & gunting kecil. Masukkan rencah dalam air rebusan, masuk daging & potato. Then continue simmer until potato hancur & kuah jadi pekat.

Mee rebus for baby bear. Tak pedas, so selambe Miya bedal licin.

Mee rebus for Big bear, kena letak cili kicap la..kalo tak, tak terangkat....

Lasagne Yang Jahat - Lasagne sheet dia sikit, yang banyak tu daging, bechamel sause & cheeeeeeese... Tu yang takde rupa hemsem lasagne, rupa evil food.

Evil Indulge: Choc Cuppy with peanut butter & 100's 1000's.

Steak Dinner? I just learned on how to cooked a perfect steak. For a 1inch thick steak, on high heat, sizzle each side for around 6-8mins.

Yummy steak for Papa Bear

Yummy Steak for Mama Bear

A lil something for Baby Bear

Pulut ni favorite Miya & Papa Miya. Mama Miya tak reti masak ni, slalu masak tak menjadi. Ni la 1st time masak agak perfect.

Pulut Baby Bear

Pulut Papa Bear

Ni Frankie in Blankie, very simple recipe & takes 10mins untuk bancuh + 10mins to cook.

This is a snack I enjoy di zaman sekolah rendah dolu-dolu. Fish cake thinly sliced, cucuk on a stick & letak sambal on it. Superb!!