Womb service - penang trip

Now Adam is not an impromptu person. I almost choked when he asked me, "So when do you want to go to penang to get your Mi Sotong Hameed?" I jokingly said,"Why don't we go this weekend since i do not have any classes this weekend." ( I'm currently undertaking a diploma for teaching and learning). He replied calmly and said "Challenge accepted"

Truth is I thought he would change his mind nearing weekend but to my surprise he didn't. Adam's plan was just a day trip and well, I, on the other hand would prefer to spend at least one night. With this we decided to play by ear and decide once we arrive. We took our time to depart from Shah Alam and we only started driving out to Penang about 2 pm

We told Isaac it was going to be a long car ride so brace yourself, Isaac. He was surprisingly well behaved and was mainly singing and watching the trucks/cars along the way. He slept for an hour and that's it!

We arrived in penang about 7 pm and headed straight to the Mi Sotong Hameed. Isaac soaked his pants because us parents were too lazy to change to his diaper ( yes we only have ourselves to blame).Unfortunately I was too full from the Starbucks I had earlier along the way and couldn't finish my meal. I had two glasses of coconut shake though. So yum!

Isaac and his monster truck. The food was too spicy for him though

We decided to find a place in town after dinner and came across this place. I was interested in staying a night in The Artist Studio Lodge because it as an artistic appeal into it and I would want to have a attached toilet as well because it is scary to be going to the toilet at 3 am (and I go to the toilet often now with my current condition). However, upon checking in our room that I found out that the toilet is on a sharing basis. My bladder seems to get the idea because I did not wake up to pee at odd hours throughout the night. Phew. We left the place early in the morning without having the chance to notify the owner because she was nowhere to be found. It was unfortunate however that the owner is a bit cold towards us which I don't understand why. Maybe we weren't the type of guests that she preferred.

We had a nice and calm breakfast along Transfer Road. It was really good because we avoided the other stall which had a bigger crowd. With a travelling toddler, one has to make wise decisions such as this.

Isaac and his love for fruits 

This was so good. Eggs and cheese in between 

Our little family. Isaac wanted to have a sip of Adam's Teh Ais 

Overall we enjoyed our short trip to Penang and was pretty pleased at how Isaac behaved throughout our journey. Can't wait to bring Isaac to Tanjung Jara this weekend. 

Julia Gabriel for Our Little Man

Honestly the title should state that one of the reasons we went to Julia Gabriel is for me. I've been wanting to experience being in Julia Gabriel for so long! Yes, even BEFORE Isaac came into our life.

Now, I started off with making some calls to the centre to enquire about their programs. Apparently they only have 1 program which is suitable for Isaac's age and it is a parent accompanied program. He will only be able to join in the independent programs when he is much older. After enquiring further on the payments, I was informed that the trial class would be RM159 for the ones on Saturday. The program goes by semesters, and some semesters would have 14 weeks while some runs on a 10 weeks program. 

One of the reasons why I wanted to enrol Isaac in a weekend play school is to enhance his skills and to entertain him because he gets bored easily now. 

We were greeted by 3 teachers and was told that there are only 3 babies joining us for the day which is something that I preferred. The session started with a 15 minutes warm up session (the whole session is 1 hour and 30 minutes). Isaac was overwhelmed with the toys and the space that he could crawl! By the end of 15 minutes he was screaming with delight and started to be more comfortable with the playroom. 

The session was based on a colour theme and it was brown. So all the songs and activities revolves around the theme. We did stamping on a drawing of a bear and sang songs about a brown bear and his friends. 

Isaac actually wanted to eat the potatoes

At the end of the day Isaac had a water play session which I wasn't prepared for (I did ask whether I do need to bring anything on that day and the person in charge said no) and he had some snacks before we ended our day. 

No pants because we came unprepared

With the other mommies and teachers

All in all it was a fun session and I would have signed up if we have the budget for it. I am all in for learning through having fun activities. Maybe I will come back to Julia Gabriel in the future to enrol isaac for his pre-school years. Money, RAIN on me! 

Hello America (October 2017_Part 1)

I would be lying if I were to tell you guys I wasn't nervous about bringing a toddler on a long haul flight. Fortunately for us, my in laws will be accompanying us on the trip going to US but it would be just the 3 of us when we take our flight back to Malaysia. 

So what should you prepare when you travel with a toddler? 

Definitely a lot of patience.. and new toys! We even wrapped them like gifts so Isaac will have the joy of unwrapping them. This trick worked on Isaac because he wasn't really attracted to watching the flight entertainment. I did make sure that I packed enough formula milk and diapers. I sure don't want to run out of them along the way. That would have been disastrous. So yes, pack enough or always go for more if you are unsure. 

In general Isaac behaved well on flight. He slept most of the time on flight and only waking up for diaper changes. However, when he is awake he will wonder why is it taking so long to reach our destination and tried to position himself in many different positions to make himself comfortable in between us. 

Sleepy before our flight because it was a night flight 

Another tip when traveling is the lesser hand luggage the better it is 

Our little traveller 

Apparently I don't have any photos on flight so these are the only ones I have of our journey going to US. I was 3 weeks pregnant when I went for this trip and we went for an appointment with our gynae to ensure that I am fit to travel. I was prescribed with hormone pills and of course folic acid. I remember being unsure that my pregnancy would survive but hey, this little lady in me is a strong lady. 

Better Late than Never

Oh my, how time flies. When i looked at my last entry it was in 2016! I don't know how i became lazy to update my blog but like the title states, better late than never.. 

So here I am, April 2018 and 34 weeks pregnant. We have always known that we would want another child and are thankful that our prayers were answered much quicker than expected. 

We are expecting a girl this time and as I have jokingly told everyone that this might be my last child ( I really think we want another one if it is in God's plan as well)

Here is our precious daughter first photo. We will see you in 6 weeks time, sayang

33 weeks then, with soon to be big brother, Isaac 

The first time Isaac saw his little sister. How can you resist that smile?

Hello, baby girl. You have my lips there 

PS: I'm going to try and blog about our US trip that we took in October 2017. May the force be with this momma!

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.