Mommy's First Day At Work

nite before:
Abiy took us out for a treat at Pizza Hut [actualy i was the one who asked him to, haha]. konon2 to celebrate my very last day of being a SAHM.

on the way to Bintang, you were already ek ek ek.. but Mommy told Abiy "alah xpe.. nanti dia OK la" because i reeeaaaallllyyy wanted to eat pizza! [plus, so laaaaazy to cook :P].

at Pizza.

after we made order and everything, you started jebik2.. and HUWAAAA! Mommy tried to calm you, check your diaper, dokong2 around the mall, offer BM, peluk2, gosok2, tepuk2, etc. etc. but nothing worked. until the whole Bintang gamat dengan suara ini budaks. sidaknya di sia duk nanga kitak teriak2. and finally, i asked Abiy to bungkus & balit saja.

you cried non-stop all the way home, and at home also non-stop for 2 and half hour. ADA SIK URANG BOLE MADAH KENAK BUDAK TOK MELALAK SIK MOK BERENTI2!!! wah, kamek nang sik pandai kelaka Sarawak!

Mami masa tu memang dah tak tau ape nak buat dah. macam2 dah buat. abis baca sumer ayat2 dah. tak stop2 jugak. and finally guess what made you stop crying...?

ITOK!!!

mengamuk nk bace buku ropenya nya tok...

after dapat itu baru la diam. wah sungguh ajaib. sejuk rasa perut Mami. hehe. then terus diam & bole la lepak2.

maka bole la Mami prepare for the next day...

• blend segala bawang2, put in closed tupperware & store in fridge
• sweep the floor, tidy up the house
• iron the clothes
• pump the milk as usual

the stok tongganglanggang in my freezer.

• preparing the pumping gear & get the fridge2go frozen enough

bottles, pump and the plug.

• update my schedule

but Hafiy waited for me to go to bed. only at 12.30am both of us went to sleep.

the next morning:
i woke you up at 6.30am. bathed you, and dress you up. but failed to BF you cos you already started your puasa. Mommy went out with my pumping gear, a 'handbag' and a company diary. and my new clothes, kurung kedah so that it's easier to me to breastfeed you in the noon.

departed to Permyjaya at 7.05am. it was a bit late, so we couldn't singgah lama2. our office hour started at 7.30am.

in the office, the first thing i reported my duty to HR department. make sure that they're gonna key-in my salary for this month. suda keringgggg.... then got back to my workstation. nothing changed [beselerak mcm biasa], but my PC changed. got a new ones!

i didn't have 'meroyan' on the first day, instead, 'semangat' mau kerja... cos my project now become a sampah-like, nyawa2 ikan & i have to bring it back to live before this financial year ends [sabar.. sabar..]. OK, it'll be like a phoenix, rebirthing from sampahashes.

okay this time, despite the i- really- don't- like- this- j*b, despite the i- really- don't- like- this- and- that, now Mommy don't care anymore. smile! i just came with a new spirit of 'SERVING THE NATION'. hey this industry contributes 40% of the government's $$$ what.

Mommy went to Permyjaya to breastfeed you, but you didn't drink much. sikit2 jugak. so Mami think the next day i don't have to go anymore la. jauh OK. after the breastfeeding i still have to pump, at 11.30am before went to lunch. and again at 3.00pm. just got 10oz total, maybe cos i didn't drink much water and a bit dehydration. oh tomorrow should bring my water tumbler!

overall, today is a 'flatten' day since i took my loooong leave. me at work were OK, no 'homesick' [and even if i had, i can go home/to Permyjaya anytime!], very high spirit to re-start my job & look for opportunity to change position [oh see how macho i am!]. tired, but still i rewarded myself, by baking apple shortbread [tak jadi ponnn! tp OK la, abis jgk kutelan] and nasi ayam. so penat yg amat & Mommy so tak larat to layan you tonite. alhamdulillah you're so understanding & not merengek2. thanks honey...

everybody in the house in a good position...

The School of Life

after leaving the uni end of 2004, i once determined to pursue master degree. i even applied [& got the offer!] for a master program in structural engineering with uitm & with uiam [but unfortunately they didn't offer master program for civil engineering nor structural engineering]. but it all was only half way since i got offer from my current workplace. even, after reporting my duty, i was still dreaming of pursuing master in petroleum engineering. but it's all undone.

now i'm not into getting any higher certification than my first degree. because i don't know what for. i studied [not very hard] to obtain my first degree for the sake of getting a good job. and nothing to do with what i've learned at school to be applied in my daily life.

nevertheless, i've learned a lot from this very school of life, after say bye-bye to formal education.

my no. 1 guru is definitely my beloved husband, your Abiy. how i feel so glad for marrying him. he taught me a lot [even if it is sometimes unintentionally] and most importantly, he taught me to appreciate myself even if the world puts me in the sewerage. he's not 'teaching' me like a teacher in a classroom, white board, etc. but the way he treats and teases me, i take them as free lessons to be 'more human'.

it just some cases like this. i told Abiy about an email i received. a story about a father, a mother and a baby. the baby was trapped inside their BMW in the high-noon, the mother cried while the father went back to their house to get the spare key. and the mother refused to break the car window.

Me: if you were that father, will you go back to get the spare key?
Abiy: my child is more important, i'll break the window.
Me: so you want to bear the cost?
Abiy: if i have a BMW, i would have triple of its value in my account.

and i learned about prioritizing. to save money is important than to have a luxury car. and a family is the most important.
and situation like this..

Me: Abiy, if won't see my b*ss. i just ha*e him.
Abiy: you go and tell him that.
Me: tell him what?
Abiy: tell him you ha*e him.
Me: do you think i'm gonna do it?
Abiy: then, don't say it.

and i learned to not condemning someone at his back. if you don't like anyone, just tell him, don't tell others.
or this..

Me: there's so many immigrants selling goods in this market. where are the Bumis? i think they are lazy so they just rent out their stalls to these immigrants.
Abiy: maybe they can get more by renting those out.
Me: but they should lease it to other Bumis, not the immigrants.
Abiy: so, why don't you just go and rent the stall? you are a Bumi afterall.

and i learned to not complaining about thing i can't make it better.

well, being a mommy gets lots more to learn and lots more skills to venture.

1. learn to do multitasking.

• online while breastfeeding - i learned this from Aunty Munirah. haha. thanks!
• folding clothes with you on my lap.
• breastfeeding while walking - i master this skill since the confinement. when someone knocked the door while i'm breastfeeding you and nobody was there. i couldn't stop you cos it'd make you refuse to nurse again. so i walked to the door with a drinking baby!
• cooking while holding you - i have to make sure i put you away from the stoves and knives. bahaya nih!
  

2. learn to be patient.

• once i thought my baby was a freak, or i was a freak, until i met Aunty Baiti. then i knew my baby is unique [in fact, every baby is unique]. he cried all the time. yeah, nobody will believe this until they meet my son [before he changed to hold-me-or-i'll-cry these days]. yes i'm not lying, even somebody ever said i was exaggerating about my baby until i brought this lil' fella to her... hey not even 10 minutes she raised her white flag. thus, many said he was sick, or because i didn't do this and that, or because of the spirit and so on. i did every single thing suggested, until my grand-uncle who a religiously 'spirit expert' told me "nothing wrong with your baby. he's not sick nor overwhelmed by spirits. it's just his 'habit', crying2 like this. after all, he is a smart boy. i can see it from his eyes". so what else could i do? just patiently wait for the time he's stop crying.
• sometimes this boy drives me madly crazy. i talk to him and tell him [since he was born] everysingle day and nite that i have to do chores, i have works to do and he has to be independently play or watch the CD, etc. afterall he is a big boy now and get use to this world, no more needing protection from me. but it doesn't work well. he wants me to be with him all the time. actually he wants to be with someone and there's no other someone here, only ME! sometimes i just leave him with his toys, never work well. he'll cry just after i leave.
  

3. learn to not always listen to [&follow blindly] others.

• each baby is unique. some babies' general features might not match one single baby. hm, knowing that i'm using cradle, some say "apsal ajar tido buai, payahlah nak bawak berjalan" or "sampai ke besar la ni nk berbuai". but i rather trust my instinct that my boy is OK. and now, even if he used to sleep in cradle but he can sleep without it. even sometimes he refuses to sleep in his cradle.

i even can sleep on Mommy's lap.

4. learn to be well-organized

• i was a disorganized person [i guess still am]. i don't have proper files in my workstation. my last personal schedule i made for myself was during my PMR year, it was 10 years ago. but now i have to be well-organized for the sake of the quality time with my family. i wrote my daily schedule, rearranged the furniture so that we could have our very own family space, wash the raw foods as soon as they are brought home and put them in separate containers so that it's easier to thaw, blend the bumbu siap2, and don't procrastinate. procrastination is lethal. phew~ with that i guess i can cut the time to be with my family.
  
• i have to wait until my son goes to bed before i can do all the house chores. and sometimes if he just wants to sleep with me, i have to forget all the floor-sweeping, mopping, clothes folding, etc. and i don't like to see my house in tunggang-langgang [even if it is so most of the time], so i wake up early in the morning to continue the works.

5. learn to be creative

• there are various ways to learn. since my son likes to 'join' me cooking, so i tell him about the things we have in our kitchen.
• i don't limit to certain activities, which are so-called as - the must thing you have to do to develop your baby's brain, etc. or else he'll not developing well yada2.. to me, whatever the activity is, most importantly both of us enjoy.

i am Momotaro in basket!

6. learn to be thankful

• when we were at Mbah Aki's house, this lil' fella cried all the time. i asked Mbah Aki if he had any tips, doa, or whatever [since he is an Imam masjid] to make him stop crying. Mbah Aki told us to "banyak bersabarlah... ni banyak pahala ni, bukan sikit2 ni". then i was, uh-oh, i should stop complaining. we should be thankful for this gift, that gives us BANYAAK pahala [if we sabar, isn't it?].

7. learn to learn

• i never learn when i was in school. i studied/read books/do exercise just for the sake of exam. and now this is the very important part. and the hardest part. how to learn when i didn't know what learning really is. learn how to learn from the books when you're schooling is very easy and simple. the step by step is there & you just have to remember it during exam. here, even if the steps by steps is available in the books, but when the time comes, i'm lost. no more multiple choices or tembak2 thing, especially things involving my family and my kids. so i have to learn harder especially from my instinct, my surroundings and from others.
  
• learn to learn is very hard, cos sometimes we think that we are smart, and smarter than others. we're likely to bounce back on other's opinions or critics, even if initially we are the one who asked for those.
  

8. learn to trust my maternal instinct

• when i was in school, the schemes for everyone are the same for a particular subject. if i answered A and the answer was D, i wouldn't get the mark. but here, no right and no wrong. i can put A on my kids while others maybe put D, but none of us are wrong [as long as it is not something too ridiculous]. my kids are not Mrs. A's kids. even if he's not turning or rolling his body yet, but he's not abnormal. and i believe that all babies are geniuses & active. just they have their very own & unique pace to achieve certain stage.

gosh, why this Backstreet Boy's verse is keep on playing "..the whole world’s a school so much to learn so learn it well.."

Happy 4 Month Old!

td pi cucuk Hafiy. Hafiy berat 8kg. Abiy cakap ni la akibat malas minum susu, naik sket je dr bln lepas. Mami kata xpa.. normal dah tu. OK dah tu kang obese plak.

Hafiy dah 4 bulan! maknanya apa? maknanya Mami dah kena kerrjaaa!!! maknanya akaun Mami berduit balik!

alhamdulillah, Mami rasa lucky dapat spend masa selama 4 bulan ni bersama Hafiy, dapat tengok Hafiy 24/7. even if satu menda Hafiy x tunjuk kat Mami lagi. Hafiy belum turn. tapi Hafiy ada la mengereng2 sikit. boley la...

tapi Hafiy suka wat gaya nak bangkit. tanda nya nak suh angkat la tu. suka sgt berdiri or duduk tp xsuka tummy time, turn ape lagi. agaknya nak ikut Abiy, xmengereng tak meniarap, xmerangkak, terus jalan. boleh nak ikut tp biar la cepat sikit.. Abiy 2 tahun setengah baru berjalan. selama2 tu duk baring. je. tak larat tau Mami nak dokong aje...

Ni dia paspot biru Hafiy. disebabkan kabel kamera ntah kat mana, Mami pakai cameraphone ajer... itu gambarnya kurang memuaskan. tengokle gambar passpot ntah pandang ke mana tu... & tangan Mami pun ada gak. hihi.

disebabkan Mami & Abiy bukan warganegeri Sarawak & Hafiy pun bukan jugak, so all of us have to have this Passport Terhad to remain in Sarawak. pastu kene cop work permit. kalo expired ni... kene halau immediately! rupa & size lebih kurang paspot international cuma kaler biru :D Mami seronok giler ada paspot ni. macam special je kalo balik kampung, nak blk Miri kena siap2 pasport. macam duk overseas pulak. ahaks.

skang ni muka Hafiy dah tak calar2 macam dulu. pasal Hafiy dah pandai pakai belakang tangan kalo gosok muka. ni sign Hafiy nak tido. dah tak nangis dah sekarang kalo nak tido. dah besar kan anak Mami ni... tapi mesti nak tido dengan Mami, xmo sangat dah dalam buai. siang2 boley la duk dalam buai. malam2 sorila. nak atas dada Mami jugak. sampai semput Mami dibuatnya.

"Mommy.. I'm sooo sleepy"

sekarang Hafiy makin kuat tido. paling suka tido kat dalam carseat Hafiy tu. carseat tu mmg magic betul la. kalo tgh nangis2, Mami letak je dalam tu, terus diam. yg paling best masa kuar pegi Boulevard tuhari. punya la nangis xberenti2.. masuk keta, Mami peluk pun tak diam. last2 Mami malas layan, letak dalam carseat, IMMEDIATELY diam.

syoknya tido anak Mami...

ntah mimpi ape tu yek.

masa buat makan2 tuhari, Uncle TJ (officemate Abiy) kasik Hafiy ABC playmat ni. tQ Uncle TJ! mmg useful betul. kita main guling2 kat mat ni. memula Mami pasang benda tu kat depan TV, tp macam xproper. TV is the biggest distraction kat anak Mami ni. kalo nenen pun nak jenguk2 TV jugak. so Mami alihkan kat tempat PC Mami. jadi family private space plak kat sini. OK la so xganggu kalo tetamu datang :D

..the itsy bitsy spider...

best woo guling2 kat atas ni. sepah2 tu kad nyanyi Hafiy. buruk sangat sbb Hafiy yg lukis sendiri.

tp skg Hafiy dah tak talkative sgt la. nape ek? muka macam asik duk berpikir aje. agaknya sal Mami & Abiy pun jarang borak skg. Abiy byk keje, asik duk berfikir je. betul la babies ni suka tiru apa orang tua buat. hey, tapi ni kecik sangat lagi larrr!

skg Hafiy dah tak kisah sapa2 amik, xde nak nangis2. tp muka stone je. haih. mana pegi ekspresimu!

Hafiy suka tarik2 spek Mami & Abiy. kan Mami salu cakap jangan tarik, nanti Mami tak nampak Hafiy. pastu suka cakar2 muka Mami. tumbuk2 Abiy. mainan gantung2 tu pun habis ditarik. kain dalam bakul pun Hafiy tarik. tarik bantal, selimut, tilam.. paling best kalo nak suh Mami tuka pampers, Hafiy tarik2 plastik pampers tu. macam pandai je. hehe.

Mr. Police kat sebelah tu dia wat derk je.. duk ralit tarik kain dalam bakul.

Mami & Abiy suka geletek Hafiy. pagi2 before mandi Mami geletek dulu. tekekek2 Hafiy gelak. time mandi pun Mami geletek jugak. hehe. time boring2, ape lagi, geletek Hafiy la. mmg hiburan percuma. hihi.

Hafiy skg suka menjilat2 & gigit barang. abis benda nak masuk dalam mulut. [biasa la budak2 tgh nak explore, one of their way is masuk apa2 dalam mulut, bukannya makna dia lapar or dah boleh kasik solids] Mami kasik teether xmo, nak jugak cari benda pelik2. baju Mami la, baju Abiy la. nasib la xbole gerak sendiri lagi, xde la risau sangat Mami. Abiy pun dah alert skg, xde nak sepah2 syiling kat lantai. kalo x, ada je syiling kat memane. hehe.

HAPPY 4 MONTH OLD SAYANG MAMI!
WE LURVE YOU!!!

Back 2 Work Rehearsal

Mommy's gonna back to work in a week! gosh i bet this is the most miserable moment after being a mother - leaving my boy with someone else... and HAVE TO work! hmm.. i like working, but need ample time to switch back my biological into working lifestyle.

Mommy started bottle-training again (stopped since last week cos Mommy so lazy to wash the bottles - have to change to suitable bottles every time, one session only but 3-4 bottles needed!)
. alhamdulillah it was better than ever - only 2 bottles. huh! but the result was still unchanged la. minum main2. takes more than an hour to finish 2 oz milk. you 'play' with botol susu like playing with your teether. gigit2 jer...

alah, konon sibuk nk pegang sendiri... bukan nk minum betul2 pun.

and this morning Mommy sent you to Makcik Ana. we afraid if you refused to be left with stranger. but after been advised by Auntie Anne (teringat pretzel Auntie Anne's :P), we decided to send you only half day for today and another 2 full days. Thursday & Friday stay at home with Mommy, yeay!!!

siap2 pagi2 lagi kuar pegi Permyjaya.


eh apsal muka tensen ni?


close up muka tak puas hati.

on the way to Makcik Ana's house, Mommy told you to not to be notty, don't cry-cry, drink from bottle and don't make Makcik Ana's life horrible. hahak. Mommy left you with:

- a bag of diapers with wet tissue and nappies.
- 2 pair of clothes with towel in case you need for change.
- toileteris.
- 4 containers with 16oz frozen milk.
- your rattle and teether.
- & Mommy's love.

you were such a good boy. you didn't cry any tears, even better, you laugh when playing with Makcik Ana's kids. so it made Mommy's heart become release. so Mommy don't have to worry much about leaving you there, just for your bottle-feeding. Mommy's still waiting a call from Makcik Ana. hehe. Mommy hope you're OK drinking from bottle :)

can't wait for this afternoon, i want to pick you home!

*oh yes, yesterday Uncle Dayat came to visit you. but Mommy didn't take any picture cos my hp went out of battery. maybe we can check at his blog? he took several pictures... ;)

Mari Mencuci

Pek Baru - 2X concentrated!

Pek Lama

ini adalah cecair 'magic' yang Mami paling suka! namanya basic H. senang saja, ala2 one size fits all. dengan ada benda alah ni Mami boleh berjimat! satu botol ini saja bole digunapakai untuk basuh tangan, basuh pinggan, basuh dinding (especially blk air yg berkulat2), basuh lantai, basuh jamban, basuh baju, basuh tingkap, basuh botol Hafiy, basuh sayur, basuh buah...dan sebagainya, termasuk ubat untuk ulcer mulut Abiy.

macam tak percaya je mula2 tu bila Auntie Cherie Mama si Faiz cakap benda ni boleh ubatkan ulcer mulut. tp Mami try juga la on Abiy yang selalu kena ulcer.. pakai cotton bud, celup dalam liquid tu sikit & tekap kat tempat ulcer. OUCH! pedis..pedis... tpkan, sehari dua pas tu ulcer Abiy dah sembuh dah.

disebabkan ia tidak mengandungi bahan2 kimia bahaya macam fosfat, nitrat, etc. so selamat utk dimakan. heh. Mami buat basuh sayur & buah serta botol susu Hafiy. kalo basuh buah, especially grape, mmg best sebab dia bole hilangkan putih2 kat buah grape tu. & segala menda alah oil-based pertisid kat sayur2 bole ditanggalkan & sayur pun kelihatan lebih segar! serius.. kalo Mami rendam sayur yg dah ala2 nak layu tu, mesti segah balik.

benda ni sebenarnya adalah residue daripada vitamin2 shaklee, kira macam hampas2 vitamin tu lah. sebab tu dia takdak bahan2 kimia yg bahaya. & since it organic & from natural resources, dia adalah biodegradable. sebab foundernya, Dr. Shaklee tu sgt mementingkan kesejahteraan alam sekitar. so xperlu pakai sabun2 yang tidak boleh terurai gitu.

dan jugak dia bole tanggalkan permanent marker. celup je kapas kat dia & sapu kat mana2 yg terkena marker tu..mmg berkesan!

lagipun, tak payah pakai banyak2. sebab dia concentrated, 2-3 titik dah cukup utk rendam sayur/buah. sesudu kecik dah cukup utk basuh pinggan. sesudu kecik utk basuh baju. sudu yg biasa kita pakai kat dapur tu je... bukan sudu special2 pun. cuma dilute dalam air je & sudah siap utk dipakai [tapi Mami pakai axion ntuk cuci pinggan sebab Mami suka buih banyak2, basic-H ni xde buih, huhu].

ah, memang best lah!

*oh, Mami bukan nak promote Shaklee tapi nak share apa yg Mami pakai dengan ibu2 & kawan2 Mami. kalo benda elok, apa salahnya kita sharing2 kan~

*sesiapa yang nak tau lebey lanjut or nak sharing2 juga bole hubungi saya di talian bebas tol : sauberlina@gmail.com :)