Bibir - A Review on Syed Faizal's First Product

First let me introduce who Syed Faizal is. He is a renowned make-up artist who has done many magazine spreads and has beautified many brides-to-be, including myself. I love his touch. He is known for his amazing glowy make-up for brides and experimental ones for magazine spreads. Based on my own experience, I would recommend him again and again to future brides. 

When I found out he was coming out with his own product, I knew I had to have them. His first product features 6 matte liquid lip color and he featured various local stylists/celebrities/socialite for his campaign. They are priced at RM 40 per piece and if you buy 3, there's free postage for you. 

He describes his first collection as playful pop colors and each are quite pigmented. They should feel weightless and waterproof. Their Instagram Page also features steps on how to use their lip color in 3 easy steps; prep, line and fill in.

As their team was having a free postage promotion for a purchase of three lip color, I decided to get three (it's pretty easy to convince me. Sheesh)

Here are my chosen colors:

Roseluck, Sparklesnap, Firecracker (also shown is the packaging it came with. Reminds me of Sephora)

                                      

Roseluck is described as a deep red while Sparklesnap is more of an orange color. Now I did not want to purchase Firecracker at first but since Syed Faizal himself said I could pull off the color, I decided to get it. Firecracker is a deep brown color.

Roseluck

Sparklesnap

Firecracker

The first time I tried it on, I could see all the lines on my lips. Hence the first step is VERY important. Always remember to prep your lips with lip balm and avoid rubbing your lips together after application since it is matte, it is not the same as wearing normal lipstick. As for the waterproof and being lightweight, they indeed lived up to that. In fact, it is hard to take it off! I had to use oil cleanser to clean it off. 

Overall I would recommend this brand as it is long lasting (but you need to reapply after eating, of course). Syed Faizal is coming out with a range of nude colors next. Count me in! 

Isaac Johnston's Aqiqah

I think everybody knew how excited I am about Isaac's Aqiqah. I started preparing weeks before the event and I am very satisfied on how the event turned out to be. Despite Isaac was a bit cranky that day, which limited my socialising time with my invited guests. He was probably overwhelmed with the attention he received that day. Plus, the event was scheduled during his afternoon nap time.

Being a person who loves craft-making, I insisted on doing some DIY decorations, despite hiring a decorator for the event. It was the best decision I made because I was very satisfied with the outcome. Craft making proves to be a bit more difficult this time because I can only realize my ideas when Isaac was asleep, which resulted in my own lack of sleep.

When I started planning for the aqiqah, I knew I wanted something simple, not over the top with a lot of flowers. Something that's a bit more boyish ( and cheaper due to lack of fresh flowers). Pluck and Blush got the idea of what I wanted and sent me some drafts. I decided quickly which was the way to go. I believe in leaving things to the professionals and not to meddle too much into it. The word 'trust' here is very important. 

The night before the event, Pluck and Blush came and started setting up the backdrop for the event. They are basically a very hardworking and diligent husband and wife team. They used to be my students many years ago. Despite the wife being heavily pregnant, they still came all the way to my mom's house AND stayed until 2 am to complete the job! If you do have an upcoming event, I would totally recommend them. While they were working on the background and such, the rest of us were working on other things needed for the event. My aunts and cousins were busy with the door gifts while me and Adam worked on my DIY ideas. One of the things that I was thankful is that isaac has started sleeping throughout the night by this time so we could focus on our tasks without worrying about him waking up.

All the work paid off when we saw how it turned up the next morning. Everything was how I imagined it would look like. All those sleepless nights was worth it. 

Hanging baby breaths decoration by us 

Dessert table by me. You can't see the dessert because it came in the middle of the event. Those tassels sure took a long time to make.

Center table decoration by Pluck and Blush

Our little man getting ready for his big day 

Proud parents... and Isaac starting to cry.. 

The usual suspects

Adam and his car buddies

One pretty satisfied mommy here!

All in all, I am very happy with how things turn up to be. The food was good, the decoration and everything was how I imagined it would be for my little boy. I'm going to have to start preparing for his 1st birthday in 4 months time now! I already have a theme .. 

Isaac and his first solid food experience

For the past month or so, my mind is just full of what do I cook for Isaac. Every. Single. Day. I officially call it my new motherhood obsession. 

I have been waiting for Isaac's first food experience since forever. Only because I bought the Baeba Babycook months before Isaac hits 6 months and hid it from Adam until he was ready to eat. I got the Classic (cheapest model of course) and is drooling over the Pro version. I love my Babycook, by the way. I have been using it for two months and it is by far the handiest tool that I have ever bought as a mommy.

This is what I have

This is what I WANT

Have I tried purchasing baby food? Yes, I did, but believe me mommy friends, once you make your own puree for your baby, you would agree that home made is best. Not runny, and do not go bad too quick. Having said that, if you really want to order baby food, do order from bebetummy. Isaac loves their Salmon surprise and chicken cheese broccoli. But since I have learned how to make chicken cheese broccoli for Isaac, I only order salmon surprise from time to time. 

Naturally I did some research on what is good to give as baby's first solid ( I like Annabel Carmel). The Babycook that I bought came with a tiny leaflet as a guidance as how much water I should put in for a list of food but that was it. Not in the favour of purchasing a recipe book yet to make puree but I might change my mind later on. So most of the puree I made for Isaac are taken from the internet. 

I decided to try pear for Isaac's first food. It was difficult at first as he was so used to the bottle that he struggled to swallow what I gave him. Technically only 40 % goes into his mouth. The rest? To his CHIN. I did read that it is normal for a baby to not know how to eat at first and we have to be more patient when feeding. After a few days, i was relieved to see that he has started to adapt to eating and thank god ENJOYS eating. Im a happy mommy! I did stick to the rule of introducing one type of food for 4 days and only move on after that period of time. 

Always eager for meal times

To date, I've made apple, banana, sweet potatoes, pumpkin (i LOVE this!), peas (he hates this so I had to mask the taste with sweet potatoes/pumpkin). I started giving him chicken when he turned 7 months a couple of weeks back. So far, he has not rejected any food except for peas, that is ( and there is this one time i made chicken, apple and carrot. Adam said it tasted horrible. SORRY!). I freeze all the puree I made and store them in a zip lock bag. Don't forget the to label them as they might look almost the same when they are frozen. There was this one time I asked Adam to defrost some pumpkin and spinach, and he defrosted the peas instead. 

I use OXO tot. I'm too stingy to buy a Baeba storage

Zip lock bags and labels are from Daiso. Storage is a breeze with these zip lock bags

I also have to pack food for Isaac's daily nursery meal times. Found these container in a baby store near to my house and I love the fact that I can stack them. Yes, also label them for the caretakers to know which is for breakfast and which is for lunch. 

Up to this very day, I find joy in providing home cooked food for Isaac.I did not manage to provide enough breast milk when he was an infant, but I sure don't mind cooking all the good food for you. 

I can't wait for him to be able to enjoy baby pasta. Yum. 

Penang - First road trip for Isaac and us as parents (Part 1)

It is obvious that I haven't been blogging for quite some time. Aside from busy being a mom, I have been really busy at work too. So the trip to Penang was something that I was really looking forward to. I told Adam that I only wanted to have one thing in Penang and that would be the Hameed Special Mi Sotong. I saw this on an instagram account when I was pregnant and it has been on my mind ever since. 

We planned our journey according to Isaac's routine. Aimed to leave the house by 9:30 am (managed to do this, phew!) because we know Isaac would want to sleep by 10 am. There's a big difference bringing Isaac around this time because he has started eating! So I had to prepare his food that would be sufficient for the whole trip. We had a total of 3 bags which is not that bad, really. I expected to bring the whole house with us! 

We decided to stop by Ipoh to feed this little man and change his diaper. This proves to be a good move because he was starting to get anxious in his car seat. 

Frozen pear, banana and pumpkin

He is really happy to be OUT of the car seat

Pear and banana. YUM

Helping mommy with her OOTD shots

We continued our journey to the island after making sure that Isaac is full and has a clean diaper. The journey wasn't as smooth as it was before because Isaac was having a hard time to sleep. He was knocked out after a bottle of milk (I had to go to and fro between the front and back of the car for this - so please get a 4 door car if you have a family trip). We arrived Lone Pine at about 5 plus and thank God the check in process went smoothly. I honestly cannot wait to just laze around in the pool after being in the car for so long!

The whole room was as pretty as how we remembered it. We were here in 2014 for our 2nd year anniversary, so this is our second time in Lone Pine. A baby cot was placed in the room but we find that it is a bit sunken so Isaac had to sleep in the big bed with us, hence the smile on his face here. As he doesn't move around when he sleeps, we didn't mind having him on our bed. Plus, a holiday is also a time to relax and not follow the usual rule, right Isaac? On Monday, you sleep in your bed again, okay 

Yeay I can sleep with my parents for 2 nights!

We obviously didn't waste any time changing to spend whats left of the day time to go for a swim. Isaac had a firm and curious look throughout his swimming session. He was probably trying to digest how come there's a lot of people sharing his tub that day. Oh well, at least he didn't cry like the last time we put him in the pool in Phuket. 

Water baby

Oh my, who farted in the water

The long day ended with a good walk by the beach. He slept right after HIS dinner time and was really cranky when we woke him up for OUR dinner time. No food hunting activity achieved that day, but we were really happy that we arrived safely, and survived our trip going to Penang. Now, the journey back, is another story... 

Vitamin-Sea

Sunset watching

The boy who refused to wake up for dinner 

Baby Wearing : Lillebaby Complete Airflow

Boy, you wont believe the amount of time I've put on researching for the best SSC for Isaac. At first I was so into Ergobaby 360, searching high and low for a preloved, and finally got one for a decent price. However, on the same day of finally finalising to purchase the item, Bebetotz uploaded a carrier called the Lillebaby Complete Airflow on their Instagram account. 

I was immediately attracted to it because there are many reviews on Ergobaby being too hot   (you can opt for Ergobaby Cool Air to overcome this but it is pretty expensive here) and hello, I live in a tropical climate where HOT is 80% of the weather here in a year. I prefer the look of Ergobaby but I decided that I don't want Isaac to be cooked in his carrier. I did opted for the Active Baby K'tan for this reason as well, so the SSC chosen should also lean towards fulfilling this purpose too. 

True to its name, there are numerous good review on Lillebaby Complete Airflow. One, it is cooler when compared to Ergobaby, two, you don't need an infant insert (I am planning to keep this until our second baby comes. God knows when) and three, you can wear it in 6 different positions in which I would probably wear 3 out of the 6 positions. 

Here's my view after a few weeks of wearing the Lillebaby Complete Airflow. 

Would I ditch my Baby K'tan? NO! I think wraps are amazing for newborns. At least until they are 3 months plus. I would keep my Baby K'tan when I am too lazy to set the SSC up. Wraps are generally softer and easier to store while SSC takes more space and I am still figuring out how to store it nicely. It is also advisable to start using SSC only when your baby is 4 months and above. However, the Lillebaby Complete did claim that it can accommodate newborns as well. Since I do not have a newborn to try the Lillebaby with, I have no idea whether newborns would be comfortable being in one. 

It is also better to rent or try carriers before purchasing them because what works for others might not work for you and vice versa. There's a few places where you can actually rent carriers to try out. We took a risk in buying without trying but it turned out well for us. Thank god, if it didn't work, Isaac owes us money. 

To date, I've been using the Lillebaby for my walks and recently for my exercise routines while Adam uses it for our outings. Isaac didn't sweat much in the carrier. Almost dry, really. He sleeps in the carrier each time we go for our morning walks. 

Best thing about carriers is that you can easily kiss your baby

A little pocket where you can place your phone and wallet

The head support is amazing when Isaac sleeps. I would use it when I see him getting sleepy and he'll sleep in no time. AMAZING!

Adam loves it when we use it for our weekend outings. Front facing Isaac from time to time especially when we dine really makes him happy. 

My cool boys

So generally we are happy with the Lillebaby although I wished it was softer. I do hope it will soften with time. Im looking forward to use our Lillebaby when we go on our next trip. 

My next SSC target is a Jumpsac which is made locally. I want a pink one please! 

Edited: I ALSO WANT A KINDERPACK! 

Edited (2018): i own one Kinderpack and Isaac grew out of it. I will write a review on Kinderpack once my second child fits into it 

Phuket 2016

I'm supposed to write about our Hong Kong trip, but decided to do Phuket first. Granted it was Isaac's first trip out of Malaysia, it was also Adam's first trip to Thailand. It was my first trip to Phuket, but I had a feeling it would be similar to Krabi. I was partially correct. Phuket is a busier island compared to Krabi, in my opinion. 

As you are aware, Isaac's first flight experience went better than what we imagined. When we arrived at the Phuket Airport, we were not given any immigration form by the air stewardess which was kind of odd. Perhaps they ran out of it? God knows. 

Now, the hotel that my in-laws booked was 40 minutes away from the airport, so it was another long journey to finally rest and relax. Similar to Krabi, the driver stopped at a place whereby they promote many activities to be done in Phuket. 

We stayed in the Holiday-Inn Express and it was perfectly placed as it is very near to the beach and surrounded by 7-11. Rooms were clean and they even accommodated our request for a baby cot for Isaac. Since Isaac is trained to sleep in a baby cot, he enjoyed sleeping in it. I know because he slept for 8 hours straight throughout our stay. The only downside is that the room does not come with a bath tub. So Isaac had to take his bath in the sink. 

Happy baby in the morning 

One of the activities that is worth mentioning is Isaac's first time in the swimming pool. Which did not turn out well, by the way. I took pity on him and did not continue to soak him in the pool. My guess is that the water was too cold for him. Poor baby. 

We also went snorkelling with my FIL and SIL. Without Isaac of course. My MIL and aunt was kind enough to take care of him while we went on a full day trip to Phi Phi Island. Honestly, the corals and fishes are way better in Malaysia. My FIL even commented that it looks like a black and white TV down there. So please, go for Redang or Perhentian if you really want to see the beautiful land under the sea. I enjoyed myself nonetheless. It was Adam's first time snorkelling and he commented that it was beautiful. This guy really needs to go to Redang. 

At the pier

Apparently people actually live here! 

More people than sand at Maya Bay

The Johnstons chilling 

Bobbing heads

Completed the night with watching Simon Cabaret (watched it in Bangkok many years ago). Still, very entertaining. Of course, Isaac was fast asleep throughout.

100 Baht minimum to be paid for photo sessions but the ladyboys were kind enough to give it to us for free

The next day was spent with Isaac. We brought him to the beach and I can see that he was trying to absorb as much as he could. He probably wouldn't remember his first time seeing the beach, but I would forever remember it. That should count too. 

Pathway is available for strollers

Street food. Please take note its hard to find halal food in Phuket. However there are many Indian/Arab restaurants. If you don't mind having that most of the time ..

Wide awake at the beach

One with daddy

He fell asleep (again) on our way back to the hotel. I notice he likes to be cuddled when he sleeps now. Hence why I would really want to purchase an Ergobaby. We visited Bangla road on our last night and boy it was full of lady boys, ping pong shows, pole dancings.. very festive indeed! We also had to purchase extra formula milk for the little guy as we were running really low on our supply. Need to remember to ALWAYS bring an extra tin of milk for future trips.  

Bangla road

Cabaret show 

Probably the most amusing thing that night

All in all it was a very good trip and I had my foot massage and full body massage as per planned. Didn't purchase anything much in Phuket, but here's my loot from the airport and Boots Pharmacy. Haven't tried the serum yet but the lip balm saved my super dry lips in Phuket. 

The dried durian is NOT okay to me. Cashew nuts were so good and the milk durian candy was okay as well 

Buy 1 free 1 promotion. Hooray!

Note: A huge thank you to my in-laws for including us in this trip and for all the Baht spent in this trip. We are looking forward to the day that we would be able to do the same too for them instead.