raya come quick!

we are just a few days shy from Aidilfitri and I'm pretty sure I will not be blogging at all next week (being Raya and the long holidays) so I might as well write today. Not that I've no work to do. I've tons to do. For instance, I've to attend a hearing this very afternoon at the KLHC bleugh!! A hearing on a bloody Friday afternoon before the long holidays?? Pffft!! And then I've a submission due by 12 September. Silly Sessions Court judge fixed such a short date to prepare a trial submission. What was she thinking? And why the hell does us, the Defendant has to submit first? Just because we put no case to answer and did not call any witness, does that mean we have to submit first? And we don't even have the Nota Keterangan yet. It doesn't help that the Plaintiff did not put in a witness statement either! double triple pfffftt!
Of course I will be on leave for the whole of next week AND on 8 & 9 September as well. I am due for my next check-up on the 8th and my brother is getting married on the 9th. How can I go to work, right? that means i've 3 days to prepare the submission? No way am I taking back the file and slave over the submission during Raya. Hell to the No! Oh well, I might as well ask for an extension of time.
Anyway, enough venting about work. the Raya and holiday mood has definitely kicked in. Not much preparation has been done, even though this will be our first Raya together, officially as husband & wife. What matters the most is that we have each other and we have our families & loved ones to celebrate with. I will be carrying around a bump and I hope I will be carrying it in style. Speaking of which, finding a decent baju raya this year proves to be more challenging than ever. I made 2 baju kurung moden which I've yet to pick up and the tailor has been pestering me to collect for I may need to do some alteration. I was 6months+ when I took the measurement and I am sure there needs to be some minor, if not major alteration. I tried to find a nice kaftan or maxi but none are to my liking. OK, i like a lot of maxis and kaftans that I saw but the price is simply ridiculous. So scrap that. I finally managed to find a nice flowy kaftan top, in the colour that I wanted which I will simply pair with a simple long black skirt. In this condition, comfort comes first. Besides, it can be worn after delivery as well. I don't want a baju which only looks good during pregnancy. I sure don't want to look frumpy or pregnant when I am not later on.
Anyway, I would like to take this opportunity to wish you Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Maaf Zahir & Batin. Have a good time with your loved ones, cherish everyone around you, be safe & stay safe wherever you are and may Allah bless all of us.

cleaning in progress Part 3

3rd batch of baby's clothes, washed on 7th August 2011.

i've also washed the pillowcase, bolster case and mattress sheet and air-dryed the pillows, bolsters, comforter and bumper pad out in the sun. the anticipation is building up...

my favourite cookie

i am not talking about raya cookies. i am talking about my all time favourite cookies which is none other than Famous Amos. i have other favourite cookies too but Famous Amos definitely tops my list.

anyway last week i was craving for something sweet so i bought 200gms of the cookies. my favourites are:

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies with Pecan Nut. they are the black ones.

Chocolate Chip Macadamia Nut

I just love anything with nuts in it and Macadamia Nuts are huge! but just look at the piece above. it is flat and it contains no Macadamia Nut at all. and not only this one piece but a few other pieces also have no Macadamia Nut in it. I was frustrated. I mean, where the heck are the nuts?? I feel cheated. pffft.

See, this one is even lompong! i suppose the nut has fallen off from the cookie when I bought it. i looked for it in the bag but it's nowhere to be found. OK but at least I know this piece had a nut in it but what about those flat ones? No sign of nuts at all! Geram!
Anyway, I noticed that some Famous Amos sell by the bags. for example, if I buy 200gms (100gms of each flavour) they put it in separate bags, even though I asked for it to be mixed together. However, some places can mix the cookies together in one bag. What the? I'd prefer them to be mixed because 1st, I am doing my part for the environment. 2nd, I like the element of 'surprise' when I dig into the bag not knowing which one I will get. 3rd, they are of the same price anyway so why can't they be mixed? hmmphhh.
I used to bake chocolate chip cookies for raya but I am not sure if this year I will be baking any simply because I am not in the mood (yet) and perhaps I'm just being plain lazy?

cleaning in progress Part 2

second round of washing my little one's clothes, done on 6th August 2011. also hand washed each and every tiny little onesie/bodysuit/romper, which i've got tons. they are so adorable and i think they are best for newborns, especially in our hot weather. they are also easy to wash and easy to dry.

phew~

worried much?

Don’t you just love it when people said that you’ve lost weight or that you look slim or thin or your face looked runcing? Ohhh these words are music to our ears, right? But not when you are pregnant. I have been receiving not one, not two but several comments from relatives and from people I know that gave me such remarks.

Incident 1
Back in June during my bestie’s wedding, a few of our friends said, ‘Eh you Nampak kurus lah…muka you nampak runcing’. That time I was 5month+, almost 6 months pregnant. I told them it’s probably because I had a terrible morning sickness in the first trimester that I lost 3kgs.

Incident 2
Hubby’s cousin said, ‘Awak punya muka runcing lah. Perut pun tak berapa nampak. Baby boy ye?’

Incident 3
In the 1^st week of fasting, my mum and dad also said that I looked like I’ve lost weight and my face looked cengkung. They asked if I was eating well. I told them it’s probably because I’m tired, I’ve no make up on that time (thus the pucat look) and probably because it’s the 1^st few days of fasting. They told me not to fast if I am not up to it.

Incident 4
I went for berbuka at hubby’s aunt’s place, she asked me how far along I was. I said I was 7months+ and she said, ‘Kecik ye perut awak? Muka pun nampak runcing. Biasanya orang pregnant time ni muka dah sembab2, pipi semua naik.’ Aiyoh, I don’t know what to answer. I just said, ‘tu lah, sebab puasa kot.’

Incident 5
Bumped into a friend in Court and she asked me how far along I was. Told her I’m already 8months and she said ‘Tak nampak macam 8 bulan pun? Perut tak nampak besar pun.’ Yeah. I just smiled and said, ‘Ok lah, kalau besar2 nanti susah nak beranak pulak. Tak larat nak bawak perut nanti.’

Incident 6
A friend sent me a message on fb and said that my tummy looks small and she even asked me if I jaga makan when pregnant. Of course I did not. Before the fasting month, I just don’t feel hungry and I don’t snack in between meals. I simply eat regular meals.

The evidences above are clear. Somehow rather it made me worried. Now is not the time when I want to look runcing, kurus or lose weight. I should be gaining weight! At the last check up, I did not gain any weight but the baby was already 1.3kg and the doctor said that the baby is developing well. My check up isn’t until next week and I don’t know whether I’ve been gaining any weight or not as I did not weigh myself. And I’ve been fasting too, except for 2 days which I’ve skipped. Should I continue fasting even though I feel fine? Or should I not? If I fast and wait until the next check up to know mine & baby’s condition, will it not be a bit too late? A lot of people advised me against fasting though. But then, I feel fine and the baby is active and kicking me real hard that my tummy looks like a mini washing machine tumbling around.

Am I worrying a bit too much especially after those remarks & comments from the people I know?

Or should I ignore and enjoy every last bit of the pregnancy?

movie-goer

i don't know why but i always fell sleep while watching a movie. there are just some movies that are too boring for me or failed to grab my attention. ok the movies may not be that boring what with all the war, the noise, the fights and whatnot but i still managed to fall asleep. some of the movies that i fell asleep while watching include:

1. pirates of the carribean
2. transformers
3. captain america (courtesy of BIL)
   
4. harry potter
5. cowboys & aliens (which i watched last night courtesy of lil bro who got tix to the premiere)

these are the movies that i remember. i am sure there are a few more. and this does not happen when i'm pregnant. this has happened ever since, forever. to say that the cinema seat is comfortable, i don't think so. to say that the environment is conducive for sleeping, hell no. it is just me.
i also fell asleep watching dvds with hubby at home, especially his kind of movies. but come chick flick or cartoon, i will be most awake. haha. speaking of which, i can't wait to watch Puss In Boots and Smurfs. i know i will definitely be glued to these two movies.

cleaning in progress Part 1

finally managed to 'find' time to start washing some of the baby's stuffs. this was done on Sunday, 30th July 2011. i hand washed all of them. i had to stand up by the sink and washed each and every tiny little piece. i got a slight back ache for standing for so long but seeing it all hung up, it sure looks cute all right.

the first time

There is always a first for everything, right? This year is the first Ramadhan for us as husband & wife and it is a great feeling. This year also is the first time for me fasting and being pregnant at the same time. I am already in the 3rd trimester and it is perfectly safe for me to fast, as per my doctor. However, in the event that I am not up to it, I can always break fast. But I am trying to fast for as long as I can and for as many days as I can. It is still too early to tell because it has only been 5 days (including today). But alhamdulillah, all is fine so far, except that i felt extremely sleepy during the day, which I think is normal regardless whether you are fasting or not. Yesterday, I went to the Shah Alam Court and on the way back, I felt so sleepy that i was this close to stopping by at McD's drive thru and get myself a GCB or a milkshake. yums. however, I gave it a thought and managed to refrain myself from doing so. I was not hungry nor thirsty. I was also not feeling nauseous or dizzy or having any other symptoms that require me to break fast. I was merely sleepy that I need to put something in my mouth to keep me awake. That, I think is not a valid nor justified reason for me to break fast. I can't use the excuse of being pregnant to break fast when in fact I was very sleepy.
In preparation of Ramadhan, we bought a microwave oven for the purposes of reheating food. No way I’m gonna reheat a small portion of food in a pot and having to wash it later. Too much work. We were lucky that on the 1st day of Ramadhan, we break fast at my BIL's house where my MIL cooked. We even tapaued lauk from her for sahur the next day. 2nd Ramadhan, we break fast at my parents' place. Also tapaued one lauk. On the 3rd Ramadhan, I told hubby, OK today we are gonna break fast at our place, just the two of us. I was too lazy to go anywhere and I've got tons of laundry to do. So on Wednesday, being the first time cooking for berbuka with hubby this year, I just had to cook something. I left the office at 5pm and by 530pm, I was already home. I immediately went into the kitchen and cooked a few dishes. It's nothing extravagant but at least it is my own cooking. I've been wanting to eat onde-onde since day 1 so i asked hubby to go buy some while i continued cooking.
So what did we have for berbuka that day?

quite a spread for 2 persons, huh?

ikan kembung rebus masak cili

bendi & cendawan stir fry

daging masak kicap with potatoes

hubby bought sup kambing

ikan tempoyak-tapau from my mum

alhamdulillah. however, so far, i've not performed terawih prayers yet as i will be short of breath, semput and i feel so uncomfortable after eating. i did not eat that much but everytime i eat, i will feel breathless, thanks to my growing baby. any position i sit is not comfortable. *sigh* i hope i will be able to go through this holy month without any problems and insyaallah, i hope to fast for the whole month. may this holy month of Ramadhan bring blessings to all of us and may all our prayers are answered by Allah swt.

baby shopping

we went baby shopping last weekend and boy do we really shop! no, i did not shop for babies, duhh. i shopped for baby stuffs, that is, at the 7th Parenthood Expo 2011 held at Midvalley Convention Center.

well, as we all know, Midvalley on a weekend is madness so imagine going there on a weekend, when an exhibition/expo is held. double the madness, i kid you not! traffic was crazy, as usual. it was literally a bumper to bumper crawl. wait, make that a standstill. most parking bays were full and we almost went to park at the Premier Zone at The Gardens but luckily there were a few bays available at Zone U, The Gardens. it took us almost an hour to get to parking, at 7th floor. luckily we had banana leaf rice for lunch earlier at Nirwana Maju.

we then went straight to the Exhibition Center and it was packed. there were all kinds of belly sizes, all kinds of strollers and it was near impossible to move around. however, we went from one booth to another but our main agenda is to get a cot, a stroller and a car seat for the baby.

along the way, i got distracted and bought several other items for the baby, like this bath cushion. it was the last piece and it only costs RM10. i don't know if it is really necessary but it's RM10 from RM69.90 for a freaking sponge cushion. how can i miss, right? we already have a bath tub, which we bought at IKEA for a mere RM19. but it is just a simple bath tub with no support or special features and whatnot unlike one brand selling at RM169.90. so i guess this sponge cushion is a bonus.

and then i saw a lot of people carrying this purple bag. some were carrying more than 1 bag so i just had to find out what it is.

it is a brand of disposable diaper, named WHOOPEE. i've never heard of it before and they told me it's a new brand. no wonder they are selling really cheap. unfortunately they don't have in newborn size so i bought a pack for S size and it only costs RM20. i don't know if it's good or not but it's worth a try. besides, it was really cheap for 78 pieces.

we went round and round and also bought a bedding set and a newborn pillow. i may need another bedding set, though. one is definitely not enough, right?

i regretted for not buying the nursing pillow. it was the cheapest among all. the salesperson was very clever, btw. there were about 5 pieces left and she went 'cepat2 tinggal 5 saja, sudah habis' yada3. hubby said to me, 'sekarang dia cakap la 5 pieces, jap lagi sure dia bawak keluar stok baru.' true enough. the 2nd time we passed by the booth, there were tons of it! but we did not buy it because we haven't done with our rounds yet. konon2 nak survey kot ada yang lagi best & murah. pffft. i got distracted very easily but hubby made sure that our main agenda is achieved so he dragged me to make sure i keep on track. we wanted to buy this particular car seat but unfortunately it was sold out. sob...sob...we've done our survey for these stuffs so we practically know what we wanted. it's just a matter of making sure that we get a good bargain out of it. we then managed to buy a car seat, of another brand, which is within our budget and it meets our requirement. it is for a newborn right up to 4 years old. lega! one item struck off the list. hubby then together with the salesperson went to send the car seat and the few items that i've bought earlier to the car. it sure was a long walk to the car all right.
in the meantime, i made more rounds at the expo. i bought a few items for myself too, like nursing bras, disposable breast pads, nursing tops and maternity panties.

benda2 dalam plastik ni tak payah la nak tunjuk, ye?

i only bought 2 nursing tops and 2 nursing sleep bras. cukup ke?

those small items were foc.

then we walked and started looking for a cot. we found one which is within our budget and it has additional features like changing table, mobile thingy, night light, music and vibrator. it is also portable. haruslah beli! we also bought a stroller at a really good price. however, the stroller was out of stock at the expo so we will have to collect it at their shop some time this week. basically we got everything covered. phew! it was a relief. other things that i need is a nursing pillow, another set of bedding and other miscellaneous items, which can be easily obtained anywhere else.
we were there from 4ish to 9pm, and they are already starting to close. hubby went first with the salesperson to send the cot to the car while i waddled slowly to The Gardens. by this time, my legs, feet, back and whole body ached like mad but it was worth every bit. i managed to buy a cooling bag at the very last minute too haha.

i still need to buy some ice packs.

we reached home at 11ish and hubby got so excited that he assembled the cot there and then. i heard the noise coming from the room and wondered what the hell was he doing. i thought that we should wait because i don't want the cot to be dusty. but he said he wants to see how easy or not it is to assemble and he said that he was excited. he then asked me, 'you tak excited ke?' well of course i was excited but i was more tired than excited but seeing him all out in the room, it made my heart melt.

overall, we managed to get good bargains at the expo and it was worth it. now that the major stuffs can be struck off the list, i can now focus on our raya shopping and wait for the baby's arrival, insyaallah.