Pregnancy Massage

I have always wanted to go for a pregnancy massage and after doing a quick search online, I found one near to my office. I told hubby to belanja me the pregnancy massage. I told him " Well, we wouldn't have to pay for it if you would give me a nice back rub and massage every now and then and when I do ask, you would do it properly and not simply." He agreed. I mean, when else do I get to be pampered, right? Since he doesn't want to pamper me in such a way, I shall seek pampering outside. :P 

It turns out that there's Urban Retreat Spa at One Mont Kiara, which is near to my office and home.  I've been to the one in The Curve with my bestie Sara a long time ago but since I have one near my office and home, I might as well go here. I booked a slot at 6.45p.m on 29 August, the Friday before Merdeka. It was a nice treat prior to a long weekend.

This is the price list for the services available. At first I wanted to go only for 60 minutes but then I thought, might as well do for 90 minutes. You can also check their website for other services and prices.

  

 I was lead to a room and was asked to change into a top, which I can't even button fully due to my huge tummy  and a pair of pants. i was informed that they won't be using any oil because the oils that they have may not be suitable for pregnancy. So I was fully clothed during the whole session. I lied down on my side and was made comfortable with the pillows wedged under my belly and in between my legs. Before I begin the massage, they asked if I wanted to go to the toilet but I already went beforehand. The masseuse is an old Thai lady who can barely speak English but she was gentle and kind. She asked me if the air condition is too cold, she asked if I was comfortable, she asked if I was feeling OK every now and then. 

I felt fine but at that time I was still coughing and having runny and blocked nose due to my fever earlier so I kept on coughing which made me uncomfortable. She even offered me to drink a glass of warm water, which helped soothe my throat. The massage was nice and gentle and it really hit the right spots especially down my back and spine. It felt so good!

But after a while, I felt the urge to pee so I told her I needed to pee. To my horror, the spa itself doesn't have a freaking toilet. Yes, you read right. They have a bathroom with a bath tub, shower and sink but no toilet bowl. If I wanted to go to the toilet, I will have to go to the toilet outside, which is the mall's toilet. I find this ridiculous because there's no way I'm going to the toilet outside in the attire that they gave me, especially that I can't button the top fully. She gave me a robe but the robe was too small either and there is no way I am wearing a robe to the toilet outside! Even though One Mont Kiara is not packed and there were barely any people walking around, one would be crazy to go to the toilet in such condition. If I were to change into my own clothes, that would take time and I have about 20 minutes left of the massage. Imagine the time wasted if I were to change, go to the toilet, change again and by the time I'm back on the mattress, time would be up. So I had to hold on to my pee. So the last 20 minutes of the massage wasn't very pleasant due to a full and compressed bladder.

After the massage, they gave me a glass of warm tea which I only drank a bit because my bladder is already full and compressed. I quickly made my payment and literally ran to the loo to pee.

This was taken after the massage. I felt really good all over and especially after peeing. If you are pregnant and looking for a place to do a pregnancy massage, you might wanna try Urban Retreat Spa. The price is reasonable, in my opinion but make sure you empty your bladder beforehand!

I Almost, Almost Won A Mini Cooper!!

I was thisclose to winning one of my dream cars, the Mini Cooper on 14 August 2014 BUT Lady Luck wasn't smiling at me. It all started a few months back when Watsons held a contest named Watsons Mini Giveaway. All you had to do was to spend a minimum RM80 in a single receipt including some of the participating brands. You have to be a Watsons club member to be eligible for the contest. So sometime before we went on our holiday to Perth, we bought the essentials at Watsons KLCC and our receipt was more than RM80. There were no slogans required. Basically once you swiped your Watsons member card, you are automatically entered into the contest.

Time pass by and I honestly had forgotten about the contest. But one day I received this Whatsapp message.

I was ecstatic! I mean, being the lucky 50 finalists to be in the running to win a Mini Cooper?? You gotta be kidding me, right? Suddenly it felt deja vu. Memories from 2003 came back where I received a letter from Rexona to say that I was one of the 88 contestants for the Rexona No Sweat Challenge and the grand prize of a Perodua Kancil could be mine. I immediately RSVP but I didn't receive any reply from them that I called them the next day just to be sure that they got my RSVP sms. Hey, I have to be sure OK? Hello, it's a Mini Cooper we're talking about here! They said they will check and then will call me. During raya they called me to confirm my attendance and they sent me an email of the details of the event.

The days leading to the event, I got so excited and what are the odds that I kept seeing so many Mini Coopers on the road? Was my mind playing tricks on me? It's not that often I see Mini Coopers on the road but as the days get closer, I see more than one Mini Cooper on the road, every day. Thinking positive thoughts, I told myself, it's a sign! And when I pass by a parked Mini Cooper, I'd say in my heart "soon you will be mine". That was how 'crazy' and excited I was. I even asked my boss for permission to leave early on the 14 August so that I can be at Ingress Auto, Bangsar on time.

On the day itself, I left office with my colleagues wishing me good luck and my spirits high I picked Babycakes from the nursery, went home and we all freshened up. It rained that evening and traffic was slightly congested but we reached Bangsar Village and parked our car there and even managed to grab a cup of coffee at Nutmeg before heading to Ingress Auto. When we arrived, I registered my attendance by showing my Watsons VIP card. They then gave me my 'lucky number' which was 25. I thought, hey, I'm split half in the middle. This could be a good sign. Who knows, right?

While waiting for the event to start, they served us some light snacks and drinks. People were mingling around, music was playing. We even took pics with the coveted prize. Just look at those beaming, shiny red car. Drool!!! We even told Babycakes to pray for me, we said to her "kita nak menang kereta ni!". Positivity is the key here, ok?

The event finally started after Maghrib prayers. Here's how it works:

There are 50 finalists that day, each with their own 'lucky number'. After some talks and introduction by Watsons and Mini Cooper's representatives, one of the Watsons' rep picked out 10 numbers from a box. It was nerve-wrecking. I was praying "please pick 25! please pick 25" a million times. They called a few numbers and when they announced "there's a 5 in this number", my heart skipped a beat. Unfortunately it wasn't number 25. Until the 10th number, my 'lucky number' wasn't so lucky after all. Bummer. I would be lying if I say I was not disappointed, sad, devastated. But oh well, guess it was not my rezeki. So the 10 finalists lined up on the stage and each one of them gets to pick a key from a box. They were also asked a very simple question on Watsons. When they got the key, they head over to the car and will have to try to ignite the car. Whoever's key can ignite the car is the winner. 

 Aaaaannd this lucky guy picked the right key. Lucky lucky lucky!! Rezeki you lah pakcik...

He won the car. The brand new Mini Cooper worth almost RM200k. The wife must be so happy. Duuh. Do I envy him? YES, of course!! Who wouldn't??

As for the rest of us, we got a small goodies bag from Watsons which contains some products. Not thrilled but what to do? Lady Luck wasn't on my side that day. There goes my dream to drive a Mini Cooper. There goes the song "kereta kecil warna merah....boleh ku bawa ke sekolah...pon pon ponx9...kereta kecil ku berbunyi...marilah adik mari naik...boleh ku bawa jumpa nenek". Hubby kept on singing this song before the event lol.

Hubby pacified me by saying positive things. He also encouraged me to enter more contests, keep on entering and never give up. I may not win this time but Insyaallah I will win something bigger in the future.