Random Happiness

I've been tagged by the not-so-tembam Bedah. Thanks luv, it's been a while since anyone has bothered to tag me on the blog. FB is another story altogether though.

6 (un)important things that make me happy (in random order):

Unimportant? But all the things that make me happy are important to some extent.

1. Getting my hair done.

2. Pavlova.

3. Capturing this image on my mobile on the way home from work one evening.

4. Midnight rainstorm.

5. Finding random money in the pockets of my unused handbags.

6. Slipping into my pants/jeans and realising that it's kind of loose (this has not happened in quite a while).

Now, I have to tag 6 unfortunate (?) souls to do this tag... and you're IT:

1. Lisa

2. The Plague (or are you too cool for tags now?)

3. Kiddo's Mom

4. Cosmic Gurl

5. Babyboon

6. Millie

Question for the Professor: Series 2 - On Food

Adam has now started to ask about Halal and Haram food and drinks. It is quite challenging to argue with him.

A: Mama, makanan halal tu apa?

M: Makanan halal means it is suci, bersih and lembu (or lamb or chicken) yang disembelih secara Islam [slaughtered the Muslim way]. You remember the time when we balik kampung and you saw how the cow was slaughtered?

A: Yes, I remember.. it went "krohhhhh... krohhhhh" at the end.

M: Yeah. It drains out all the blood from its body and make it less painful for the cow to die (err... I'm not too sure about this actually, but I'm trying to make it less gory for him)

A: Makanan haram tu apa?

M: Makanan haram tu is like.. err.. unslaughtered cow or chicken. That means they don't baca doa before they slaughter the animals.

A: Tapi orang Christian pun ada doa jugak Ma.

M: Yes, but for sembelih, they have to baca doa Islam for it to be halal. Pork is also not halal you know. We can't eat pork.

A: Why?

M: Because they are dirty animals and they carry a lot of penyakit with them (swine flu, nipah virus, etc.). They also like to roll around in dirt.

A: But what if we bathe them in antiseptic and give them antibiotics to kill all the viruses. Can we eat them?

M: No!

A: What if we sembelih them secara Islam? Can we eat them?

M: No!

A: But why?

M: Because the Quran says so.

A: But we don't understand what the Quran says.

M: That's why you need to learn your Bahasa Arab.

A: Mama, pork tu sedap tak?

M: ???

This is why I'm never meant to be a teacher.

Next: Question for the Professor: Series 3 - on drinks pulak.

Stroller Talk.. again

I actually had my heart set on the Silver Cross Fizz because it is so light but to my dismay, it only reclines up to 45 degree angle. Not quite comfy for a snooze. It'll probably be alright for quick trips out and not for long haul travelling, despite it's weight.

So I moved on to the Silver Cross Pop (which also comes in an oh-so-cute pink & black combo), but upon testing, it doesn't collapse quite as narrow as the Maclarens. The clasp that secures the safety harness also looks very flimsy and looks like it'll snap after a few uses. While that was a good looking stroller, it didn't quite win the votes on the many reviews I've read. There were also many complaints about the front wheel.

Silver Cross Pop

We also tested the Maclaren Quest Mod at Mothercare which fits all the criteria in terms of weight, ease of collapsibility, maneuvrability and comfort for the baby, of course. The only difference is the colour option. BUT it wasn't on sale.

MacLaren Quest Mod

The Quinny Zapp looks very mod and stylish. It maneuvres well, plus it collapses really2 tiny. The only thing is that it doesn't recline. I would've gotten this one in a heartbeat if it was reclinable. The Quinny model that allows multiple recline positions was way out of my budget. So scrap that.

Quinny Zapp

We finally settled on the Maclaren Quest Sport from Baby Cottage, Subang Parade after reading countless online reviews of strollers and testing all the other options. Maclaren seems to win the most votes on ease of use, durability, recline mechanism, weight and extra features.

MacLaren Quest Sport

I only have 2 gripes about this stroller:

1. The one in charcoal & pink is not available. So we took the one in flame orange instead (in case of an 'accident', a baby brother can also use this. hehe)

2. It is impossible to access the basket if it's fully reclined. However, this is common with all compact umbrella strollers.

Lucky for us, it was on sale too.

Shopping for a Stroller

Being baby no 3, Alayna gets all the rickety hand-me-down baby gears that has been well used for the past 8 - 9 years. I think it's only fair that we get her a new set of wheels.

I'm currently on the lookout for the best compact strollers with the best deals, of course. Right now, it's a toss between the cute Silver Cross Fizz in Marshmallow and variations of the MacLaren. Either the Techno XT or the Quest Sport.

Silver Cross Fizz

MacLaren Techno XT

MacLaren Quest Sport

It has to be (in no particular order):

1.Lightweight.

2. Compact when folded for convenience when travelling and also so it can fit into my small car boot, with room for other stuff.

3. Can be folded using one hand.

4. Able to fully recline for baby to take her nap comfortably.

5. Does not stain and is easy to clean.

6. Available in cute and funky colours/patterns an extra bonus.

7. Reasonably big basket to stash her stuff in.

8. Reasonably priced.

Not unlike buying a car huh?

Any other suggestions?

Mama Idol

How do you keep children (babies in particular) entertained during long or sometimes not-so-long car rides?

I had to be on my toes for the whole journey to the party that we went to last Sunday, as it was only Alyssa, Alayna, my niece and I from PJ all the way to Starhill. Going was not a problem as Alayna is always excited going on car rides.

I mentioned that she was overstimulated during the party in the previous entry. She behaved really well throughout the journey there and during the party. She didn't actually start to fuss until we were almost halfway home.

She refused her bottle, she refused her pacifier, she just wanted to get out of the car seat. The problem was that there's only 1 adult in the car. That's me. Driving. (Maids are on holiday and Papa had to take Adam to his drums class).

So what did I do? I sang Baa Baa Black Sheep in all the colours of the rainbow until we got home.

I went 'Baa baa rainbow/pink/blue/yellow/purple/red sheep.. etc. etc..' ad infinitum until I was almost hoarse.

That did the trick alright.

Or was that really the reason why she couldn't sleep that night?

No Snooze for Mama

We attended an enjoyable birthday party of Alyssa's school classmate yesterday. Alayna may have become overstimulated with all the magic tricks, music and balloons flying around. When we got back, she became irritable and find it really difficult to sleep unlike usual. She normally has no problems getting herself to sleep without the need to be latched to the boobies or cuddling. Last night was very trying for both of us.

When she finally dozed off and we get to get some shuteye ourselves, she woke up at around 4.30am all bright eyed and wanting to chatter and play until right about half an hour before my alarm goes off. This is when she decides to show off her new vocabs and other skills. Poor baby got her body clock all haywire.

I know at some point, all parents must have experienced these kind of episodes. I wouldn't mind so much if it was Friday or Saturday night. But baby, not on a Sunday night..

Cuckoo.. cuckoo..

Alayna woke up early this morning to the sound of birds cooing outside the window. No, these birds don't chirp, they coo. I don't know what kind of birds they are, but they wake us up everyday with 'ooOOoo.. ooOOoo'.

Little Miss Sunshine, all bright eyed and bushy tailed (with rambut kembang all, I wish I'd snapped a photo then), said 'bird'!

Oh goody! Another word to add to her vocabulary.

365 Days Later..

It's hard to believe that she actually turns one today, as I can still vividly recall the (near) panic I had when it actually dawned on me that she was actually going to arrive that day. I couldn't sleep the night before. Contractions were half an hour apart. Still, I thought it was just Braxton Hicks.

It wasn't until I had a bloody show that I hastily packed my bag (see how unprepared I was?) and sped to the hospital 10 mins away. Come to think of it, I should've showered and taken my breakfast first. The labour, although super quick (compared to the first 2) but also super intense that I almost gave up pushing due to lack of energy.

She came just 2 and half hours later. Bitesized (2.61kg), all pink and juicy.

Minutes after birth

At about 36 weeks gestation

10 months old

Now, she's one miss chatterbox in the making. She babbles quite a lot, with proper intonations too. I just taught her how to say 'bumblebee', her version - 'ba ba baiii'. Close enough.

Her favourite word of all time is still 'nak, nak, nak'. She eats quite a lot these days and will want to eat whatever food that others are having. Her favourite breakfast now is french toast, cut into long slices so she could feed herself.

My only worry is that she doesn't drink that much milk. She drinks 3 oz max in one sitting. Any more than that, will go to waste. Hence we offer her frequent small feedings instead. Her weight is just over 6.4kg. Yes, she is that tiny.

She's still on breastmilk at night, but takes formula during the day or whenever I'm not around. My supply has dwindled so much that attempts at expressing them is just depressing. So I've changed her formula to Pediasure, which is supposed to be one of the best formula to 'fatten up' babies. Let's hope it works on her.

Happy being the senior among the babies.

Happy Birthday Doll! You're the best Mother's Day present ever.

Question For The Professor

Adam had yet again, asked me another question that I have no answer to.

A: Mama, what is chicken 'pops'? (He actually meant chicken pox)

M: It's an illness caused by a virus that makes your skin break out into red dots.

A: How do people get it? By eating chicken?

M: No, it's caused by a virus. (Err.. am I right?)

A: Why do they call it chicken 'pops'? Why can't they call it, red dots or something?

M: I honestly have no idea.

Other clueless moms can click here to better prepare yourself.