Countdown to a 6-month moment!

Yes yes yes..!

I'm counting down to days for Lissa to become a 6-month-old baby.

Counting down to her half-birthday..

Only 1 week to that important date..

Why it is so damn important?

1. She and her mama completed our course of 6 months exclusively breastfed

2. She'll most likely manage to sit on her own, without any support - then she can sit on her high-chair without disturbing her mama and abah during dinner. yeay! even in the babyzone they mentioned about dining out with baby :

Alrite readers, I'll be on leave from monday til thursday. wait for my updates for her half birthday next Friday!
Take care.
P/S : Planning to shave Lissa's head.. should i or should not?

If Baby is sitting in the high chair, this is a fun time to take him out to eat. It is very important to prepare before going to the restaurant. Do your research. Here are some dining-out tips from other experienced parents:

-Choose a restaurant that will seat you right away or takes reservations. (Of course we'll prefer airconditioning restaurant and non-smoking)
-Make sure high chairs are available. (A Must!)
-Go early—late dinners do not bode well for most babies.
-Consider a window seat or outside seating. (To attract her attention towards surrounding. Not a dull wall)
-People walking by or cars moving on the street make great distractions for Baby. A water feature, such as a fountain, is ideal. (hmm.. The Curve?)
-If Baby is eating solids, have a selection ready as soon as you sit down. A hungry baby and a long wait for food do not mix. Finger foods (if appropriate) often take up a nice chunk of time and keep Baby happily challenged using his fingers. (can't wait for this moment!!excited je ek..)
-Remember, a baby loves to grab interesting objects, so be careful of plates, utensils, salt and pepper shakers, and other items on the table. (oh, definitely. not only when she knows how to sit, but currently - already possessed this skill)
-Consider the wait and bus staff after the meal is over. If your baby has really gone to town and made a huge mess under the high chair, clean up as much as you can and tip big. (erk? do we have to? hehehe)

3. From babyzone development progress, baby at 6 months old has First Real Babbles - Just last nite, she woke up around 4 am and started talking (ok, i mean babbling). I was in shock + still in sleepy mode, turned to her and saw her bright eyes. Since I was sooo damn sleepy, instead of entertain her, I breastfed her and somehow she suckled and fell asleep after like 10 minutes. Seriously, I wasn't sure if she was actually awake or she had her moment of dreaming, mengigau and talked during her sleep..

Most parents ask if a baby is just making sounds or if he is calling out to his parents. He likely doesn't make the connection with the sound and the person just yet, but keep responding and repeating these sounds back. Pretty soon, he'll be calling out for you, specifically. (Hopefully not in the middle of the night!) <--There u go, Lissa!

4. The most important moment afterall is that she's ready to have her solid food!! I've prepared a special blender for her (which is from our wedding present - Thanks to people who gave us, can't really recall who) & chopper (thanks to my mom). and as suggested by my advisor, mommy nadia, i need to shop for these weaning stages. can't wait!!
Highlight for this : ALLERGY!! I'm not sure if Lissa is gonna have any allergy. As for me, i dont have any, i just prefer not to have some food (ie : A big NO-NO to durian; kelapa muda; tempe; most of shelled seafood except prawn and crab; and the list goes on and on.. picky, rite? hehe. can't help it. i just don't like the taste. it's not that i haven't tried.

So mommies, here are some example of food that are known to be the least allergenic, including:
1. sweet potatoes
2. rice and barley cereal
3. squash

Avoid highly allergenic foods such as:

1. berries
2. dairy products
3. chocolate
4. citrus fruits
5. egg whites
6. nuts
7. shellfish
8. soy (will this include soy sauce aka kicap?)

Thinking about this coming 6-month touchdown, really made me realized, how fast time flies. It feels like yesterday when i gave birth to Lissa.

1 hour after birth - 2.47 kg , 2nd October 2009

1-day-old

2-day-old : First bath with her nenek

1st expressed milk after 3rd day of delivery

1st established expressed milk reached 2.5 oz! after 5th day of birth

7-day-old, gaining weight

8-day-old

11-day-old

15-day-old

1-month-old

1 and half-month-old

(more pix afterwards)

I'm gonna be on leave from monday to thursday. wait for my updates next week

PS: thinking about shaving Lissa's head.. should i?

How to wake a husband up in the morning?

A totally new topic for today's entry..
and it is a reality, bukan rekaan..definitely..!

I'm hoping you could give me some tips on this matter : How to wake a husband up in the morning?

Define husband?
A guy who is married to you, who is the father to ur kid(s), who is always reluctant to get up especially early in the morning, who frequently pretends he didn't hear ur voice waking him up, who always tests ur patience in the morning (not to forget, who loves you head over heels, rite honey?)

I went through some surfing and found this article from wikihow.

When you have trouble waking up a friend or family member think of special ways that you can wake them up. You do not want to scare them, as it might shock them, so try to be gentle, and not make too much noise, just enough sounds to wake them up.. Just follow these easy, step-by-step instructions and you will know how to. (okay, lets try..)

1. Walk into the room and make a bit of noise but not too loud, or you will frighten them. Try swishing your jeans or pants as you walk and make sure you do no walk too silently. A little click of your heels will probably be enough.(hai, bertuah la if my husband wakes up hearing this)
 2. Try walking in, pretending that you are looking for something. Open some drawers, move stuff around. Play with the sheets and pretend that you are looking under the covers. (he'll just move away a lil bit, and continue his sleep)
3. Notice that if it doesn't work, try just walking in and talk really loud as if you didn't know that the person was sleeping. You could also have headphones and start singing a song really loud and when they wake up you could just say that you didn't notice that they were asleep.(even with my daugther crying out loud, he didn't seem to be disturbed by that)
4. Understand that if none of the above work, then do them all together. Walk in and swish your pants along with flip flops. Have head phones and sing really loud and dance and start looking for something (hmm.. mcm orang gile jeik..haha..!mau nye my husband terpikey buang tebiat ke? hehehe)
5. Look to see if you are doing this on the weekend when you do the laundry then you can do this while taking their laundry out of their room. If this on a school day, then you could just walk in and pretend to be looking for your backpack. If you are the parent, then you could be looking for their back pack and say that you were just going to pack for them(he'll be much more happy that it seems ok he proceeds with his sleep)
6. If you can't wake him/her up with steps above, try to touch carefully the bed/chair where your friend is sleeping. If it's very important that your friend wake up, call his/her name first quietly, then louder and louder. If you are lucky, your friend will wake without remembering why he/she woke (have happened, but he figured out that he could go back to sleep, pretended that he was still asleep and in very very deep sleep)
7. Avoid touching, especially if your friend is a different gender than you. If you touch, touch his/her hand carefully. Try to imagine how your friend would feel when he/she wakes up.
8. If all of the above fails, grab an end of the object they are sleeping on, and rotate it in such a manner as to "dump" them out of bed. This method always works. (Hahaha! this is a good one.. tapi mcm tak sampai hati jeik)
9. Sprinkle very little drops of water on the face if everything else seems to fail (have tried once, but right before i dropped the water, he was wide awake!)
10. Try spraying an aerosole spray on their bare foot (aiyoo..! bad idea!!)

Some of the Dont's :
1. Do not pour large amounts of water on them. (i'm not that cruel!!)
2. Do not try anything dangerous, such as tipping over the mattress.
3. Do not yell in their ear, as some people might have a serious reaction. (uishh,..bleh pekak ni)
4. Never shake someone awake or do anything to wake them suddenly. This can lead them to feel threatened and frightened or very angry with you. You should be gentle with people. 
5. Do not block their airways as it might cause them to wake in panic. (this one is funny. i can't imagine how terrible he'll look when he can't breathe..hehehhe-notie notie idea!)

Note to my husband : No matter what, remember this honey, i still love you.. ;)

Sleeps like a baby - Lissa

Babysitter...ohhh...babysitter....

I was so furious with Lissa's babysitter.
I was so angry that i don't know how to start this entry.
eiiiiiii!!
(trying to cool down....)

ok..
let me start..

Last Monday, after work, I picked up Lissa from her day care center, along with my husband. As usual, I asked the babysitter (bs) how she was the whole day - tido lama tak, minum susu cukup tak, nangis tak, yak-yak tak.. and the bs told me she slept ok, but when she woke up at noon, and saw her kawan2 were eating, she cried. "kami suapkan dia nestum tadi. dia mau makan bila tengok kawan2 dia makan, sebab tu dia menangis" Oh come on!! she is just a baby who doesn't know anything! how come she cried when she saw people eating. how come she can demand for food when she was just fed breastmilk (bm)? she will only cry when she's sleepy or when she's hungry. she doesnt care if it is milk or soup or rice or whatever it is, as long as it makes her full. i told the bs "kenapa bagi dia makan? dia belum boleh makan lagi... bagi dia susu saje. susu yang saya bagi hari2 tu. jangan bagi makan" "oh, tak boleh ke kak? bukan dia dah boleh makan ke?" eiiii.. aku ketuk kepala karang!! (dlm hati je la..)
I am waiting for the perfect time to feed her.. I want to be the first one who give her solid food. I know that she isnt ready yet, looking at her consumption of my ebm. although her frequent of getting up at nite increased (from once to twice per nite before, increased to 4 to 6 times per nite within last week.) I'll wait for her 6-month-birthday next week.
Luckily, her bs said,"sikit je kami bagi. setakat bagi rasa saje"(i hope that's true)..
Can't wait for this week to be over. another 2 days to go. By next week, I'll be on leave from monday to thursday, then, my lil sis will take care of her until she gets her place in any U for her degree or diploma. After that, for sure, i'll get extra headache, searching for new day care center for Lissa..
Oh, btw, my husband told me "Budak kampung boleh la bagi macam2.kopi-o la, coke la.. tapi lissa ni budak bandar" no offense, but orang dulu2 fed their kids with almost anything.. but for Lissa, we want to control her intake.. want to make the healthiest food ever.so that she'll grow up healthy and smart. i dont care what people say, i know what's best for my kid, okay..

Alrite, enuff about those stubborn+ngokngek babysitter..
Last weekend we went to my parents, helping them with moving out from KL to Nilai. tired but happy could lend them our hand. and special special thanks to my hubby for working extra extra hard, moving all the heavy stuff from 3rd floor (without elevator-only stairs)..

Lissa lending out her feet during her grandparents moving out

Lissa eyeing her mama while giving her the foot warning

this pix is one of the funniest. i found my snow cap back in the US some how stucked inside one of the drawer at our Nilai's house.

Lissa posed with her lovely nenek.

Yeah! new posed by Lissa 

After one whole day of mengemas, already tired Lissa, bumbum with my dad's massaged pillow. very beady and comfy

90 days for Mums

I'm voting for this one!

 

Why?
1. Ensure the full recovery of a woman’s physical, emotional and mental state after delivering a child. (yes, we are going thru A LOT during this state)

2. Holding a full-time job while still breastfeeding is tough partly because workplaces do not meet the needs of nursing mothers (betul betul! Just look at my workplace for a fully bf mom.. pity me)
3. More maternity leave will allow mothers to provide better care for their newborns. (Definitely!)

4. Preparing to return to work is another emotional and mental trauma. The concern for the child’s care, love, affection, nutrition etc occupies the mother’s thoughts rendering her incapable of producing results up to her fullest capacity. Leave alone if the mother has no one to care for the child and has to leave the child at day care centre etc. Her thoughts are not just of the child but also the cost that accompanies the care. (Definitely TRUE!!! What happened to my baby - cold, fever, diarrhea - stay at day care center almost made me want to quit my job..)

Though some people would say, "baik tak payah keje".
Though I had experience some boring daily routine.
Though my processor works a lot slower than usual.
Though I might forget how to do my work.
Though female worker would be considered as a "Handicapped" being a pregnant woman and a mother
But I know this is worth it!
It is for our newborn.. It is for our kids..
Spending time with them, especially when they are just about to know the world.
Introducing them the whole new environment required time.

Nothing worth more than that. Correct?

So, mommies? Vote here!

Lissa on high chair

Last Tuesday we went to Tesco Extra for dinner - the nasi ayam, yummy! It was the first time Lissa sat on a high chair.

Looked calm - while trying to balance

Suddenly got super excited

No wonder la excited.. saw the teether.

Angry, mama took the teether and hide it inside her handbag

Never mind la..just put on a kesian face. hopefully mama will understand

Instead of giving me the teether, she took me for a snap. eishhh..

Now, Lissa knows how to play with the fancy toys on her walker.

I have to put a pillow so that she wont bump on the toys or reclined forwards.

She still didn't know how to move the walker. so i turned it to rocker, so that i could rock it while doing my dish (get the picture? one leg on the rocker while doing dishes. it was hillarious! i didn't put that on show whenever my husband's around. he'll laugh his ass off watching me rocking + washing..)

Breastfeeding and the obstacles (part 1)

During our visit to my baby's paed, I was criticized by the nurse (who was giving my baby the Rotavirus vaccine) and by a mom (who happened to be inside the special room-gassing her son) for not giving my baby plain water. I didn't prepare for the multi-attack, so i totally forgot about the facts involving breastmilk and content of water inside bm. Since they were older than me, and seemed to be more experienced than I am (a young mother with her firstborn child), they kept on asking me to feed my baby with plain water so that she knows how to drink water when she's older. I just shut my mouth and assumed that all of them are stupid (hehe.. that was my way of comforting myself). My husband also didn't know what to say, because of our lack of knowledge. I could still remember he asked me to give Lissa water and that was before I found out about the not-to-give-water-to-a-fully-bf-baby thing. What I know previously, dont give any water because bm itself has water. But the scientific and extravaganza explanation lies beyond my knowledge.
So, I did my surfing today to search for the facts. and this is what i found :
"You do not need to give water to a fully breastfed baby. In fact, doing so may not be good for him. If you replace nourishing milk with water, he'll miss out on nutrients he needs and it may upset his feeding habits.
Breastmilk has antibodies which protect your baby against infection, so missing out on milk may make him more likely to become unwell.

Breastfed babies do not need extra water, even in hot weather. Studies in hot climates have shown that babies who are allowed to breastfeed whenever they want do not become dehydrated.
Breastmilk is itself mostly water. When it's hot, babies tend feed more often, for short periods of time. This way they get extra foremilk, which is thinner and more refreshing than the fat-rich hindmilk, which comes at the end of a feed. Letting your baby have as many extra feeds as he wishes when it is hot means that he will get plenty of water.

It may be wise to offer formula-fed babies some boiled, cooled water in addition to their usual feeds in hot weather."
See? told you so, right? (sometimes rasa geram sangat dengan orang yang memandai ni...!)
Actually i have to give extra extra thank you to Mommy Nadia (my sifu! hait!). She was the one who told me not to feed my baby with plain water.
To my surprise, the so-called-more-experienced-mom told me that she forgot to give her son the Rotavirus vaccine. Her son was diagnosed with Rotavirus infection when he was 1 year-old and now was having a very slow development. He was starting to walk when he got infected that he suddenly stopped walking.
Facing the situation - being a full-breastfeeding mom- really make me realize how tough to stick-up to our principle. We really need to take a stand to this. I still remember how hard it was and still is - though getting better at it.
Working in the all male working environment - even being pregnant affect their perspectives towards a working female. I've heard: "Keje kat sini takde beza2 lelaki dgn perempuan, kecuali kalau handicapped. Lainlah kalau u pregnant. Bolehlah dapat pengecualian." This was uttered by our Senior Manager to my female colleague. I just can't believe my ears! How come he matched a pregnant woman as being a handicapped to a company? (I was 7 months pregnant at that time. and still managed to make a round in the factory, arranged for tools for calibration, joined tools audit held at Tanjung Malim, conducted production trials and closed monitor the trial where I went to the line and actually monitor how they run the trials - unlike a few male engineers in my ofce who'll just instruct people and sit at their own comfort in the ofce while waiting for the result!) When now being a fully breastfeeding mom, I basically set my own schedule so that I managed to fulfill my pumping routine daily. Though we have a female surau, it is located quite far from the ofce, which usually took me approximately 10 minutes to get there.So I figure that I need to get a new spot for my pumping activity. I went in pumping inside a dark room in my ofce - with no air-conditioner and with a glassed wall - praying that no one will enter the room or look inside it while i was in there. Luckily, I managed to pump peacefully even though sometimes people get inside the room just to walk by without noticing me pumping! Most of them were shocked when I greeted or called their names. It was hilarious just to see their face. Some of them wonder what I was doing inside that room. They even thought I kept my baby in there since they saw me bringing bottles of milk from the room (i kept the ebm inside cooler bag on my desk).
I'll continue on the same entry later on..
Praying to Allah that I manage to bf Lissa at least till her 2 years old.. amiiinnn

To Lissa gurl, Mama always love you!

Weekend updates

Hello mommies!
Last weekend, Lissa and I went along my mom, my sis and my bro to Nilai. Fyi, my mom has been transfered to Putrajaya Hospital from HKL effective this month onwards. Because of that, my parents will stay for good at Nilai (provided that my mom won't be transfered to anywhere else after this).

Lissa getting bored during our journey to Nilai

We attend our next door neighbor's daughter's wedding once we arrived. Luckily, not so many people were around that time (although it was already 12 pm). Lissa can even lie on the table (personally, I won't allow this, but it was my father who put her on top of the table.)

My father - playing with confused Lissa

Lissa - saying stop, dont take any picture!-with my bro's gf 

After having our stomach full, we went inside and started our cleaning activities. actually, i was cheating on the cleaning activity. i fell asleep next to Lissa (hey, who should watch Lissa when everybody outside? hehe..) 

Lissa-slept throughout the day. from 2 pm til 8 pm! I removed her cloth since she was sweating and after quite some time, right after my dad switched on the aircond, I covered her body with a towel.

 

My brother - acting like a petani with his cangkul.

My mom, my sis and my bro's gf - busy picking up all those papan for my dad's project of renovation.

My dad's so-called jacuzzi in-progress with a covered shower place (looked like a dog house - my mom said. patut la ade anjing masuk berteduh dlm tu. seriously!)

We went for dinner at Bandar Bukit Mahkota that evening before going back to KL.

Lissa having fun playing with her atok and nenek

Lissa was inside a sarung bantal. so funny! it was raining and we have to put her inside that.

Me and my sis- taking picture while waiting for our dinner. Noticed that we were wearing baju kurung from the kenduri.

At last, mine was nasi goreng daging goreng, same as my mom. Others? tak sempat nak ambil gambar, dah licin..hehehe

We (me, Lissa and my husband) went back to Shah Alam the next day. We finally managed to get to eat at one of the mamak stall at Tesco Extra.

Lissa was all excited that she couldn't stop moving.

My husband had to hold her tight in order for her to stay calm. Did it work?

Yes, i think so. You were right, dear!

Eh, silaplah. She was wide awake - interested on mama's roti canai, i guess! (Tipah tertipu)

The next morning, we went to clinic for Lissa's 5th month shot. She was cranky while waiting. but to our surprise (me, my husband and even the doc and the nurses), she didn't cry when the needle poke into her buttock's skin. but.. she cried when she has to swallow the Rotavirus vaccine. so funny because the vaccine tastes good. She pretended that it wasn't. No tears, only the short wailing.

I have to give her the teether so that she'll stay quiet. Looked at my husband, taking his short nap.

This is Lissa with her new style of playing with her soft gym-teether. Raised up your legs, high up!

I introduced Lissa with this new toys, bought at My Dear warehouse sale last week. It's all about the pop links. Good for 3+ month.

Lissa was busy with her new colorful toys.

But, instead of popping the link... inside my mouth tasted better! there you go!

Quite an entry for today.. I guess that's all for the weekend updates. Let's see if I have enough time for updates tomorrow! Take care and have a good day, mommies!