CNY Long Weekend

Had a very eventful CNY weekend. Basically, it was like a family time weekend. We slept over my in-laws place on Friday night and had family McD's breakfast at WCP, so fun! Of course, Zafirah slept the whole time during breakfast, that is what she does best in the Baby Bjorn, sleep. Then head for Nenek's after that. We met up with Shamsul, Ras, Mardee, Akiff and Ariff at WCP (again) at night. They were nice enough to come all the way there, instead of going to the airport which was too far away for us. Zafirah knocked out straight when we reached home, not having a proper sleep the night before (she wasn't used to sleeping at TJ).

On Sunday, Sadiq and Rauhdah, Irfan and Yani came to see our baby. After which, we went to Yishun and had doa selamat. It was nice. Pak Itam and family came over too, and met our baby for the first time. She slept rather peacefully amidst the noisy atmosphere. Plus, everyone took turn to carry her, so I got to rest for the day. We had dinner the next day at Simpang Bedok the next day, something we seldom do. Coz usually Pak Itam comes over for hari raya when we'll be busy visiting but this time around, we had time for such an outing. It was kecoh, coz like sooo many of us. One and a half looooooong tables were filled up. We headed for Busu's house for maghrib and continued catching up.

Tuesday, we went to my in-laws place again, coz they missed Zafirah. Then me, my mom, and sis had facials done, courtesy of Kak Rozana, who comes every week for my dad's health regime. Ohhh now my weight is back to when I was 8 weeks preggie :)

It really was a nice long weekend, spent with family.

But that wasn't the end of it all. To top off a nice long weekend - I went to office on Wednesday, on my own with Zafirah, and met up all my colleagues, who were having a CNY gathering. My first time bringing Zafirah out away from BPP on my own. She slept all the way in her carrier, and woke up for milk and a short play session. GG came after that to fetch us. We waited in the car for GG to finish work, and then to Taka we headed. Sooo nice, I haven't gone jalan2 just us. And she was looking around here and there at the lights and things around her. Also kept smiling2 and laughing2 at her daddy. Perhaps she is also happy that daddy got to spend time with her like that. I wished we could do that more often.

Now, I am in the midst of doing gubahans for Little Wan. I brought Zafirah to Arab St (second outing alone) to find ribbons and also to Bugis since there was a sale (didn't buy anything though). Ok, gtg and finish the gubahans. Ta-ta.

First Official Day Out

We went out just now, like really went out, not like hospital visit or clinic visit out, like more than a couple of hours out of the house out... Went to nenek's house and then to my in-law's place. GG has fixed the car seat and so far she has no problems sitting in there, seemed very comfy. Thanks guys for the car seat :)

It was nice being out after sooo long being cooped out at home. I realised I am like so fair now coz like I haven't been out. Next, I want to satisfy my craving for coke. :)

Just for Fun

Your KUA number is 6

Element: Big Metal
Color: White, Silver
Group: West
Trigram: Chien


How to Tap Your Auspicious Directions
* Try to sleep, eat, work, or be in this sector of your home
* Do as many activities as possible in this sector
* Face this direction when working, eating, or sitting in your living room
* Sleep with the top of your head pointed in this direction
* Enter your home or office from a door that faces these direction

Your Wealth & Success Direction: West
Enhance this direction with metal objects in groups of seven. Swords, knives, metal objects are all suitable for this sector (unless it is a bedroom). Vases, crystals, stones, and earth objects are also wonderful in this location because metal comes from earth, so the more earth elements you have the more successful -- and wealthy -- you can be.

Create a wealth bowl out of porcelain and add gold-colored objects, semi-precious stones, dirt from a wealthy person's house, and faux diamonds to boost your success. White, silver, gray, and gold-colored objects are perfect here. Add lots of shiny objects to attract more success! A front door in this location will bring prosperity to you.

Do everything you can to use this direction to promote your wealth and success! Mountain images like those below are perfect for placing on the wealth and success wall of your home or office because they symbolize the "big earth" element.

Your Health Direction: Northeast
This is an excellent direction for objects such as beautiful vases or porcelain bowls. Add stones in this location. Decorate in purple, beiges, or taupes to improve health. Candles and bright lights are also excellent health energizers for you! If your front door is here, you and your family will be very wealthy.

Your Love Direction: Southwest
The southwest is the direction of love. Lucky for you, this is compounded because this is your personal feng shui direction for love! Boost this sector by decorating in pairs of two's -- two figurines of birds, etc. Add candles to this location to boost the romance potential even further. Another fantastic addition? A beautiful bubbling fountain -- with a light! Great for singles as the fountain brings lots of wonderful yang energy.


Your Growth Direction: Northwest
In personal feng shui, the NW is your growth and wisdom direction. Work in this location to improve your standing, study in this direction, and locate beneficial activities here, such as dining to improve all areas of life. Are you trying to start over from any kind of setback? If so, this is direction to face or be in. Add a windchime here and place a fan to blow on it. This will help you get going. Need to write a lot with your job? The fan will help keep creativity high!


Your Unlucky Directions: SE, E, N, S
Try to avoid the southeast sector and/or direction. To do so can cause arguments and legal problems or some kind of accident. You will receive blame for problems if you occupy this sector too much or if your front door faces this direction.

The east and north can cause accidents, misfortune, and difficulties, such as lawsuits, burglary or fire. If your front door faces this direction, your family may leave you. If you have a business with a front door facing this direction, employees may leave. This is a good location for a kitchen or toilet.

Strenuously avoid the south because it can cause it is the VERY worst direction for you. A front door facing this direction can lead to a loss of children or other close family members. Infertility can also arise, causing the family name to die out. Wealth will also be lost. This is a good location for a kitchen or a toilet.

Weight Tracking :)

I have lost a further 3kg, which makes my total loss 13kg... How much more to go? Ideally, I would like to lose another 9kg (like hah), but realistically about 6kg would be good... These last few kgs won't be so easy to lose man. So after I am all okay, I shall start to exercise? *ponders* Maybe start back swimming.. What if I forgot what I have learnt?? Better not let GG's effort go to waste. Need to think how to fit in swimming into my schedule...

Just Us

Our first family photo... taken after my first check-up after the delivery. All's well.
Zafirah slept all the way from home, to the waiting for our turn, to seeing the doctor, to lunch, to shopping for some of her necessities at KKH till home.

New Year

Well, I think I should merge my baby/preggy's blog into my current blog. I realized that these 2 come together, my life and hers, like most of what I do now will involve her. Will do so soon.

Anyway, this is a new year, and the new year marks a new status for me, for us all, a big change. I am now a mummy. I no longer have to answer just for myself, I have to answer for this precious little girl. I can't just do what I like, as and when I like, I now have to consider my baby. For now, especially now, she depends on me, she feeds off me, literally. At times, I pity GG coz he gets less attention from me now, and he has to do most things himself. Sorry GG, after everything, I will start doing stuff for you. I am so proud of you and how you've handled everything.

Well, I thought being pregnant was the tough part, until I gave birth and have to go through the "confinement". I cannot go out, that's ok actually, most of the time. The dreadful thing is that I have to consume all those jamus and ubat periuks and can't eat and drink whatever I like. It is no wonder why women get post-natal blues. Everytime I had to drink those stuff, my mood goes wayyy down, I feel damn depressed, like really, sometimes I feel like crying, think once I did cry. I have to drink the ubat periuk like after my meals, and as such I dread eating my meals. I have poor appetite now, not feeling like eating much, when after all that feeding my baby, I should be really hungry and all right, but I am eating much less than I normally eat, though I do eat regularly. My breakfast which started off (before the ubat periuks sessions) with milo and 2 slices of bread, at times 3, now has just dropped to a glass of milo. I used to have tea-time and after dinner milo, which has disappeared along with my appetite. I can't finish my lunch, and at times my dinner, if my mum served rice. Noodles are fine, but still nothing compared to what I normally ate previously. There will be this smell of the ubat periuks that turns me off all the time. I vomited like 4-5 times already. My mum said I will get used to it, but no way, my last vomited-out-the-jamu moment was this morning, which shows that I have yet gotten used to all that and I don't think I ever will.

They say the jamus and ubat periuks are good - who will ever know whether they are bad since everyone has been forced to eat them and so no one really dared not to drink them because of what the old people have said. Sigh, I for one, is one of them. So put myself through the torture for the sake of when I get old. My pee has this strong smell (thanks to the ubat periuks and jamus), and my faeces is black!

Other than the horrendous experience with the consumption of the toxic stuffs (which is a major the cause of my depressed moments), I have to put on the (is it called) pilis stuff on the forehead, wear a binder, not drink cold water even though it is damn hot... I had the post-natal massage for a week, started a week after I gave birth. But these are fine, I can do that anytime.

Another cause of feeling down (okay more like cranky), is when the baby is having difficulty falling asleep at night, and you are already very tired, and you do not know what to do... So forgive me if I do not feel like talking much at night because I am tired (especially after 10pm), and I have a long night ahead and all I want to do is to settle my baby and me to bed.

So the only thing stopping me from having another baby - the jamus and ubat periuks. Even as I am writing this, I can imagine the pukey taste of the jamu... Yikes!

As of last Sunday, I have lost 10kg in all :)

Last weddings of the Year

Finally, we have wrapped up the wedding-going sessions for this year, finishing with Ijal's wedding last Saturday and Azah's on Sunday. Ijal being GG's good friend and Azah being mine. Nice huh... Next big thing on my agenda is to go into labour and give birth :)

It was no joke to be 38 weeks pregnant and being at a wedding the whole day. Fortunately, I have a nice hubby who is willing to massage my aching legs and shoulders and arms (I have no idea what my arms did but they sure ached damn badly) at the end of the day. Sayang GG...

Azah's wedding was also a day to meet up with old friends and friends I haven't seen for ages. Azah and I go wayyy back, since primary school. We even went to the same secondary school and uni. The only time we were apart were in JC. Soo.. we do have many friends in common. Anyway, here's wishing the both of them a lifetime of happiness and may your marriage be an everlasting one, insyaAllah. It may not be easy at times, but it is worth it. Ohh, and hurry hurry k ;p

I am a ... Guardian Protector (ISFJ)

You are observant, cooperative, informative, and attentive. You are greatly concerned with the security of others and you often find assisting the downtrodden or people with disabilities to be satisfying. You also find personal fulfillment in ensuring the safety of others and may be attracted to jobs that enable you to do this as a medical practitioner or insurance agent. You are also quite skilled at executing routines and this enables you to be skillful in jobs that require conservation skills such as a curator or police officer. You are thorough, frugal and you abhor the squandering of material resources.

You are comfortable working alone and you are often uncomfortable being in positions of authority. When you are in positions of authority, you often try to do everything yourself. You have a very strong work ethic and this can lead you to be overworked. The least hedonistic of the role variants, you are willing to complete jobs other role variants manage to avoid, especially if it enables you to help those in need.

You often talk about daily life and every day concerns; however, you are not as sociable as other role variants. You tend to be talkative only among a close circle of friends. Your shyness with strangers can make you seem to be cold even though you are often warm and sympathetic. You are often undervalued as your commitment to security and your economies are often taken for granted.

You value traditional ways of doing things and are not interested in experimentation or speculation. You deeply value family history, heirlooms and property as well as cultural norms and traditions. You firmly believe in the stability offered by credentials, titles, offices, birth and other forms of traditional authority. You dislike situations where the rules are constantly changing.

Famous Protectors include George H.W. Bush, Jimmy Stewart, and Mother Teresa.

It's a BIG Conspiracy...

You must be wondering what the heck this is all about. Well.... I just found out that M.Nasir is having a performance at the Esplanade (with Siti Nurhaliza - but that's not who I am concerned about) on 1st January 2010. I should be yeay-ing right coz I did tell GG if M.Nasir is coming to perform in Singapore, I want to watch. BUT... I can't coz I will be in confinement, and even if I am not (should baby decide to come out late), I will be like very heavily pregnant (already I am huge now, and at times feel like I can't move) and like probably not in a state to go for such thing (like what if I give birth there?) sooo... urghhh, that's what I am feeling now.

And it doesn't help that Muse (which is also another one of those band which I mentioned to GG that I want to watch if they do come down), will also be coming on 3rd February next year. Again, I will be serving my time. What's this man? I mean, all these concerts that I told GG (just in the past year that we were married) that I definitely have to go for decide to come when I can't go for them.

Sheesh!

Swimming :)

I've been going swimming with GG for the past few weeks. And I can finally... bring my head out of the water while swimming. That may sound like a funny achievement to brag about, but you must understand, I have poor coordination, and everytime I bring my head out to breathe, my arms and legs stop coordination and I panic, and start to sink. Yes, it is funny, considering that I have a bronze cert during my secondary school days (and I still can't thread water). So, GG has been my "instructor" and so far he has been doing much better than last time (he used to try to teach me how to swim properly but I dunno why, we failed). Perhaps because we go more regularly and this is in a proper pool and not the sea. In the few times that we went, I have improved. Yeay! Then soon I can get my medal eh GG? Next is to aim to swim the whole lap, slowly-slowly lah coz now pregnant cannot exert myself. And then thread water. Go Ain! GG said that we should make swimming our regular hobby / exercise. I loike, but I guess I would have to stop for a while when I give birth. As for now, I am enjoying it, and the fact that being in the water makes me feel so much lighter, and somehow takes away all the aches.

Azah's Hen Sparty and My 1st Baby Shower

Photos courtesy of Nana (who apparently was fast with this one, hehhe..)
Some for this blog...

10 Secrets To Having A Happy Marriage

by Joy Lee Tan

It’s easy to fall in love, but it’s a lot harder to sustain love. Here are ten secrets to having a happier marriage. Trust me and try them out. They really do work!

1) Maintain a work life balance

If you are addicted to your job, then you will most likely lose everything that is of value to you just like a drug addict. Without balance you could lose your family, lose perspective at work, do a bad job and ultimately lose your job, your spouse, or both!

Take the necessary time to invest in the things that really matter in your life so that everything else will come into balance. We’re not saying to slack off at work and spend all your time with your family, but you do need to find a balance between the two. Coming home every night after your kids have gone to bed and leaving for the office as they wake up, spells doom.

2) Spouse before kids

Remember that popular rhyme we use to chant in primary school, “Jane and Joe sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First comes love, and then comes marriage. Then you get a baby in a carriage.” How apt! Contrary to popular belief, in order to raise secure and happy kids, you need to put your marriage first and your babies second! A strong and loving relationship will help kids be more grounded and secure, as they notice the bond and happiness between their parents.

Children will also learn virtues like patience, kindness, love, and forgiveness by seeing the way parents treat each other. By putting your kids first, you are raising a child who is the center of the family, who will believe his/her needs are more important than anyone else’s. Such kids could easily grow up to be demanding and self-centered.

3) Agree on core parenting principles to avoid conflicts

Most parenting disagreements are about raising children, especially in the context of how and when to discipline kids. In order to present a united front as you discipline your kids, it’s important to discuss your parenting plan in advance. This way your children will not be able to play one parent against another.

4) Fighting is fine. Hating is not!

There is nothing wrong with being mad with your spouse after a heated argument. There is even nothing wrong with strongly disliking them at that moment. However, there is something wrong with harboring those ill feelings to the point of harming your relationship. Following those times of disagreement, help yourself to calm down by reminding yourself of what you love about him/her or why you married your spouse in the first place, and you’ll be surprised at how easily those loving feelings return.

5) Have sex!

A sexless marriage may not necessarily end up in divorce, but it is a marriage with serious issues and might lead to affairs. There are many feelings that occur in a sexless marriage such as feelings of loneliness, lack of confidence and others. While challenging to overcome, it is not insurmountable.

Mums, men are visual creatures, so spend time on your appearance and find ways to seduce your husband. From experience, seducing your man in sexy lingerie as you whisper flattering and suggestive words will heat things up quickly! Dads, exhaustion and sex do not mix. Consider helping with the laundry, buying dinner, and follow it up with a foot rub.

6) Talk for ten minutes everyday

Do you remember when you used to just talk? Most couples don’t talk anymore — unless they have something to communicate, a decision to make, or a task to complete. The most important thing about talking to each other is not communicating; it’s connecting. So take a vow to talk to each other for at least ten minutes everyday.

7) Discuss your finances and spending habits

Statistics indicate that nearly half of all married couples argue over money issues. This speaks loudly of the major reason most couples fight. If one is a tight-wad and the other spends money like it’s going out of fashion, it can’t help but create problems in your marriage. Therefore, talk honestly about spending habits. It’s important to establish spending expectations, set goals and decide on a financial plan for your family.

You don’t need to be right all the time!

Drop the ego. You don’t always have to be right, or your partner wrong. Such behaviour will only impede the opportunity for your conversation to have a win-win result. In the long run, does it really matter who is right? Or is it more important to create an environment where the opinions and beliefs of both spouses are of value?

9) It’s all in the mind

If you expect to get along with your spouse then you will succeed in most instances. Talking respectfully and looking for creative solutions to the problems you face will go a long way in creating a strong and enduring marriage. If you expect to have a ugly showdown, then it will happen. If you expect to resolve a disagreement with mutual respect and love, you will do so as a well balanced couple.

10) Changing the world starts from you!

Perhaps the most important secret to a great marriage is the idea that you can never change your partner, no matter how hard you try. If you spend the same amount of energy simply improving yourself, rather than trying to change your partner, you’ll find that you’ll be happier and that your partner will start responding to you more positively.

Down Again :(

After 3 months of no flu, cough, fever, I am down again!
It is quite bad, I lost my voice (or more like I sounded like a man) over the weekend, and instead of waking up to pee, I wake up because of the bad cough, and damn itchy throat. And it hurts to cough, luckily the pain is not at the pelvic area / low ab area, which I am sure will hurt even more when I cough. The pain is more in the top of the tummy. I hope baby's not made uncomfortable by my coughing. I even have to control the way I cough so as not to cough too hard.
Then came a thought - has anyone ever given birth due to excessive strong coughings?

10th Year Together :)

Today marks our 10th year together, a decade long. Whoah, so fast.
It's been tough yet wonderful.
Even after 10 years, we've still got things to learn about each other.
Even after 10 years, we still can make each other angry, sad, laugh and smile...
Even after 10 years, I still want to see you at the end of the day :) even if I am mad at you.
Love you Ubby!
Many-many 10 years more to come, insyaAllah.

Just to Share

Secret Recipe
10th Anniversary Special Promotion
26th - 31st October 2009
50% off Cake
(not sure if it's just for Diners Club Cardmembers)

More details here.

Being preggy makes me even more emotional :(
Like last night, I felt the urge to cry all the way home.
I wanted to even though I wasn't supposed to. I didn't but that showed how bad it was.

My current project - a diaper cake for the soon-to-come Ismail and Rita's baby... :) She's like 37 weeks preggy already, anytime soon.

I now prefer to sit alone and not "socialise". I prefer to do things, like stuff, like clean my room (which somehow is still messy and I just keep on rearranging and clearing and there seem to still be more stuff), do chores, not interact, make stuff (I just baked an orea cheesecake)... How to work like that? I only have 2 more months to work and meet my targets, I know, but somehow I just feel like just doing things at home.

I somehow feel incompetent, or just lousy, never seeming to be good enough at whichever status I am in. I hope I make a good mum.

Dreams

Oh past two nights, I've been having weird dreams. Can't really remember the first one, but there was a snake in that dream.

Last night, even weirder. There was some singing competition, which I enrolled in (me, who is stage fright) and apparently even those people who was doing the registration (and also some close people) didn't think I could do it and did not call my name for my turn (what does that signify?) Apparently there were many people there (but those I can clearly remember are the YJ guys, dunno why, like Imran, even Ijal was there, Mummy was there too..) What made me feel worse was Jazi ignored me. Well, after that, I ran off (merajuk lah kan) but no one came after me and that made me sad, and depressed. So after a while I went back to the place and no one was there, so slowly walked to the bus stop. There the guys were.. Everyone acted like nothing happened. Hmmm... Weird kan? Did this dream signify all my deepest fears? I dunno...

Finally - Raya Family Photos

Black for this year. Helps me look smaller, perhaps?
Notice the new addtion to the family photo.

From a different angle.

Siblings photo at Nenek's.

Our first raya together as husband and wife.

Even then, we still do not have a couple2 set of baju, perhaps next year, when we utilise the cloths we gave each other for gubahan.

Jalan Raya [AMP Gang]

This year, we started out at Anisa's place for lunch. Note, lunch. No longer the early breakfast as we have less houses this year. Seems to be getting lesser and lesser, in a way better since we no longer needed to rush and we can chill longer at each house. Abg Man, the main man, was in Tanzania (like what....?) so we did not go to his place.

So here's the lunch crowd at Anisa's place.
Then we headed to Sally's (oops, Saleha's) house. My lack of photo is due to the fact that my camera is spoilt and I am totally camera-less this year so had to borrow photos from the others. Next, Fazrin's NEW abode. Nice, albeit small. It felt like those loft coz of its high ceiling, unlike normal HDB flats. The high ceiling made the house feel roomier. I do admit, the bedrooms are really small, but overall very nice and cosy.

So the girls at Fazrin's.


My house was next.


The rest went to Ifa's place after that, and we caught up with them at the last house, Kak Ida's house.


More photos can be found on Facebook, uploaded by Fazrin and Kak Ida. There are photos of Danie and Qiara, the latest addition to the group and not surprisingly, they were the main stars in the photos.

It was nice to have the jalan raya as we don't meet that often, roughly twice a year, for iftar and for jalan raya. Let's keep this up, at least. Thanks for making it happen.